As I’m sure you’ve heard, Aflac recently fired Gilbert Gottfried, the celebrity voice of their mascot duck for over a decade. Why? Gottfried posted poorly timed (not funny) jokes about the Tsunami in Japan on Twitter. However, that’s not what I want to discuss (enough people have already).
In business, you’re guaranteed to have unexpected events which you need to respond. Situations come up. It may be a rogue mascot duck voice or a poor customer experience, which have the potential to damage your company’s reputation.
Given Gottfried’s track record, I’m not sure we can call this one unexpected, but we’ll give Aflac the benefit of the doubt.
My point is, when those moments happen, are you going to stand by and hope no one notices, or are you going to get creative and turn them into opportunities for your company to grow? That’s what Aflac did.
Within days of firing Gottfried, they announced they are holding auditions to replace him (anyone can apply!). They didn’t shy away from the controversy. They made the story about their response to the situation with a full fledged social media campaign (and an amusing “silent movie” version of their classic duck commercials). Instead of the media berating Aflac for trying to cover up Gottfried’s comments, they are applauding them for their decisive action and creative marketing!
All in a day’s social media work — will you, a business owner, have the courage to face the music and make the best of your situation?
(image via Mashable.com)