Barilla Pasta and Bertolli

The president of Barilla Pasta received backlash over statements he made about having images of gays and lesbians as family heads in his company’s advertising. What happened?

• In response to Barilla’s Twitter apology, consumers called for a boycott of Barilla products and shared their images of previously purchased Barilla Pasta in the trash can.
• Competitor Bertolli capitalized on the negative press and announced their pasta is “for all” featuring pasta in different shades and shapes.
• Weeks after the incident, Barilla announced creation of a “diversity and inclusion board” and plans for more inclusive advertising.

Esquire Magazine

Esquire Magazine had a terrible technical error related to a 9/11 story and an unassociated advertisement. The team for Esquire Magazine’s Twitter account reacted unprofessionally and only made matters worse (see image). What did we learn?

• Every public message a brand makes should be professional, respectful and informative; there’s no room for snark in communications with the media, consumers or “followers” of your brand.
• Never rush or underestimate a response to an urgent situation, especially if it involves people’s emotions.

Kmart

Retailers recently announced their annual holiday shopping schedules. Companies that have decided to open on Thanksgving Day are getting push-back and criticism from empathetic consumers that these employees aren’t able to spend the holiday with their families. Kmart is responding with a questionable strategy (see image) that looks to be backfiring. What can we take away?

• Use approved language in communications, but don’t SPAM consumers with the same talking points (especially if they’re not working); it sends a message that you’re not listening.
• Don’t point fingers at another brand to deflect consumers’ feelings about your brand.
• Adjust strategy when you need to!

Yahoo! Fantasy Football

In a recent update to its Fantasy Football mobile app, Yahoo! remembered their audience (gamers and sports enthusiasts) to have fun with their consumers.