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Who
Stepped In It
Credibility Counts: A friend on a business trip to Lincoln, Neb., this past weekend saw a column written by a local businessman that caught his eye. The Lincoln Journal Star gave the gentleman almost half-a-page of free publicity. Since the author owns a Harley-Davidson store, this was a great public relations opportunity for him to raise awareness for motorcycle safety, highlight activities of the author's business, and encourage people to become part of the motorcycle brother/sister hood. Instead, the author attempted silly humor and used made-up statistics to write a column with a purpose that is not quite clear.
Unknowingly, the author did more harm than good to his business and credibility. Businesses and writers only get so many bites at the apple when it comes to positive, free publicity. When you get one, you have to make it count.
Let's play baseball and break down this publicity. Strike one: the author fabricated statistics which instantly called into question the credibility of anything he said. Sprinkling in made-up numbers immediately gave readers the impression that the article was a hoax. The statistics were available, but the writer chose not to do his homework. Strike two: the author resurrected negative myths about motorcyclists and provided no real image of today's motorcycle enthusiasts. Not a very strong call to action for a potential motorcycle enthusiast looking for new adventures. Strike three: the author missed the opportunity to demonstrate community leadership and improve the brand of his business and livelihood.
The public relations miscue here is lost opportunity and a negative hit to credibility. Anything appearing in the media should be well thought out, and should achieve a positive result -- especially when you're controlling the message. At the very least, the author should have asked himself, "What do I want to accomplish with this column?"
This businessman should do himself a favor and hire a public relations agency or a public relations professional to help him with marketing and messaging.
If you are a PR professional looking for clients, are you paying attention to these kinds of miscues which could open doors to future business?
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