Black Friday is the busiest shopping day of the year. People start lining up for sales hours and sometimes days in advance for an opportunity to purchase a television or other hot holiday item and save money. For many, it’s the thrill of the hunt. However, it’s estimated that consumers will spend half of their holiday budget on this single day this year. While everyone is looking to save money, car dealers have historically found it difficult to draw people away from Wal-Mart, Best Buy and Target or, more recently, away from their computers as online retailers get more aggressive. Retailers have even begun to open on Thanksgiving Day itself in an attempt to one-up competitors and grab a larger percentage of the pie.

Unlike holidays such as Labor Day and Memorial Day, Black Friday is typically not known for being one of the best days of the year to buy a vehicle, despite many dealerships advertising deep discounts. According to Automotive News, one dealer in Houston has succeeded in turning Black Friday into an event. In what can only be considered a public relations all-you-can-eat buffet, Sterling McCall Toyota has taken an idea directly from the 2004 movie “Slasher” to generate crowds of people lining up as early as 5 a.m., as well as local news coverage. Started in 2008, their “Slicer Sale” offers “three vehicles… priced at $1, $10 and under $1,000 and 50 below $10,000.” According to the article, they sell up to 40 percent of their used car inventory that day, in addition to enjoying a 30 percent increase in new-vehicle sales.

Manufacturers are beginning to create programs designed to increase traffic at their franchises with special savings on Black Friday. GM is currently promoting its “GM Supplier Pricing“ special which is voluntary for their dealers.  This manufacturer-sponsored program could very well help increase traffic at dealerships and set a precedent that other OEMs may start to adopt. 

For many consumers, Black Friday is more than just about savings. It’s also about the thrill of the hunt. Being able to grab one of the five deeply discounted televisions at Best Buy or one of the holiday’s hottest gifts is worth the price of admission. The admission price typically includes long hours spent waiting in lines. You’d think that someone in the market for a vehicle would see the value in saving thousands of dollars on their new vehicle acquisition over the $50 (and time lost) to secure that television. However, historically, that’s just not been the case.

Group 1 (the organization that owns Sterling McCall) sees this as an “advertising and promotion” opportunity and it has certainly paid off for them. “Think about what three cars might cost and factor into what a TV ad or mass media would cost” said Group 1’s vice president of manufacturer relations and public affairs, Pete DeLongchamp.  I think there is also great public relations value in that it helps increase awareness of the dealership in the local community, and creates an event that generates buzz the entire year.

On this hyper-competitive shopping day, Sterling McCall Toyota, has managed to compete with all of the other retailers vying for consumers’ shopping dollars and create an event that generates buzz and excitement in their community – something that doesn’t happen very often with car dealerships. Their clever marketing has allowed them to generate massive traffic on the biggest shopping day of the year and has also gained exposure for the dealership that money just can’t buy. 

Businesses are increasingly recognizing the importance of having an online presence in social networks. Consumers have come to expect it and, whether you’re there or not, they will have conversations about you. Every year sees a higher percentage of consumers turning to business’ social media accounts for a variety of reasons including praise, complaints and support. Simply having the accounts and posting content is insufficient. Consumers expect responses. Not only do they expect responses, but also they expect them fairly quickly. When no response comes, many consumers interpret that in the same way they would if you didn’t answer your phone.

Many small businesses, however, don’t have the knowledge, experience or time to effectively communicate with customers via the various social networks. They therefore look to partner with a company that can assist them in this effort. 

Here are a few things to consider when choosing a partner.

1. Find a partner that has the ability to adapt to your voice as well as deliver your message in a consistent manner. Many providers offer canned content that is irrelevant to your business or industry. Ask for examples of their work through active social media accounts that they manage for current clients. You’ll want to look at whether there is a consistent voice that matches the company’s, the types of content being posted and whether or not their audience is engaging with that content. Are they interacting with their audience when asked questions or are they simply posting content? Is the content being posted for them unique for each client or being re-used across multiple clients? How current is the content?

2. Remember when choosing a partner that you are effectively giving a third-party control of your brand in those spaces.  They are controlling your brand and speaking on your behalf. There is no difference between speaking to your customer on the phone or communicating via Twitter or on your Facebook page. A company doing proper social media will be engaging with your customers. If they aren’t, they are simply providing content marketing. You should pay attention not only to whether they are responding but how they are. What are they saying? Is this something you’d say to a customer on the phone?

3. Another thing you should be looking for is if the company itself is outsourcing their social media. Just as consumers can tell that they are speaking to a call center when they call a company’s customer support line, they can also spot when the same is occurring via social media. Some companies use branded apps to post content and even custom URL shorteners. There should be no branding on any of your social media accounts other than your own. Having a customer realize that they aren’t really talking to you defeats the purpose of having an online presence. In fact, it can actually do more damage to your business than having no social media presence whatsoever.

By taking the time to examine real examples of live social media clients being handled by a potential partner, you’ll be able to more effectively select one that is right for you. Companies that practice effective social media through relevant content and engage your customers will almost always be more expensive than companies that simply post content for you. However, your customers will not only appreciate it, they will begin to develop a connection with your business that will result in higher levels of customer loyalty and retention. 

Businesses are increasingly recognizing the importance of having an online presence in social networks. Consumers have come to expect it and, whether you’re there or not, they will have conversations about you. Every year sees a higher percentage of consumers turning to business’ social media accounts for a variety of reasons including praise, complaints and support. Simply having the accounts and posting content is insufficient. Consumers expect responses. Not only do they expect responses, but also they expect them fairly quickly. When no response comes, many consumers interpret that in the same way they would if you didn’t answer your phone.

Many small businesses, however, don’t have the knowledge, experience or time to effectively communicate with customers via the various social networks. They therefore look to partner with a company that can assist them in this effort. 

Here are a few things to consider when choosing a partner.

1. Find a partner that has the ability to adapt to your voice as well as deliver your message in a consistent manner. Many providers offer canned content that is irrelevant to your business or industry. Ask for examples of their work through active social media accounts that they manage for current clients. You’ll want to look at whether there is a consistent voice that matches the company’s, the types of content being posted and whether or not their audience is engaging with that content. Are they interacting with their audience when asked questions or are they simply posting content? Is the content being posted for them unique for each client or being re-used across multiple clients? How current is the content?

2. Remember when choosing a partner that you are effectively giving a third-party control of your brand in those spaces.  They are controlling your brand and speaking on your behalf. There is no difference between speaking to your customer on the phone or communicating via Twitter or on your Facebook page. A company doing proper social media will be engaging with your customers. If they aren’t, they are simply providing content marketing. You should pay attention not only to whether they are responding but how they are. What are they saying? Is this something you’d say to a customer on the phone?

3. Another thing you should be looking for is if the company itself is outsourcing their social media. Just as consumers can tell that they are speaking to a call center when they call a company’s customer support line, they can also spot when the same is occurring via social media. Some companies use branded apps to post content and even custom URL shorteners. There should be no branding on any of your social media accounts other than your own. Having a customer realize that they aren’t really talking to you defeats the purpose of having an online presence. In fact, it can actually do more damage to your business than having no social media presence whatsoever.

By taking the time to examine real examples of live social media clients being handled by a potential partner, you’ll be able to more effectively select one that is right for you. Companies that practice effective social media through relevant content and engage your customers will almost always be more expensive than companies that simply post content for you. However, your customers will not only appreciate it, they will begin to develop a connection with your business that will result in higher levels of customer loyalty and retention. 

About a month ago, Time Warner Cable blacked out CBS in several major markets including Los Angeles, New York and Dallas, because of a dispute with CBS over pricing for retransmission fees. Both sides, of course, point fingers at the other with CBS saying that Time Warner Cable is not willing to pay fair value for their content. While Time Warner Cable is screaming that they’re overcharging. Similar to a parental dispute, caught in this mix are the children; Time Warner Cable & CBS customers. Customers have actually sued Time Warner Cable stating that Time Warner is depriving them of content they want, while still charging them full subscription rates. As Time Warner scrambles to appease its customers through replacement programming and… wait for it… free antennas, CBS is sitting back watching the millions of people being deprived of their content.

You know you’re in a bad spot when you’re a cable provider charging a premium to deliver content to people and have to offer them antennas to watch the content. Antennas which they could have used to get the content for free to begin with… on their own… without you. That would be like a bottled water company telling you to drink from the kitchen sink.

Regardless of the outcome, there are some lessons to be learned from both of them.

Content is king. Bottom line. CBS has the product that Time Warner’s customers are paying them to deliver. They’re the newspaper not giving the news out to the paperboy. Customers aren’t blaming CBS for the lack of content. They’re blaming Time Warner. The fact is that great content has tons of benefits for a business. Content… no… GOOD content provides everything from SEO value, social media and exposure, to blog traffic and press attention. In this case, Time Warner may have started with the upper hand since many shows are off for the season. So, the content that consumers were missing wasn’t as valued. That’s slowly changing as popular TV show season premieres and the NFL football season gets closer to beginning. I expect Time Warner customers will get more irate and vocal when they’re not able to watch their Dallas Cowboys or New York Giants playing football or get their weekly Homeland fix on Showtime. Even Wall Street is betting on CBS as “CBS shareholders have become richer while TWC shareholders have become poorer”, according to a Forbes article.

Our economy is based on supply and demand. In this case, CBS has the supply and it’s in demand. We can all safely predict that the reinstatement of CBS content on Time Warner cable is all but guaranteed. CBS will have more incentive to compromise as the loss of substantial advertising revenue from football and primetime broadcast shows increase. Time Warner will be increasingly under the gun to provide that programming to its customers.

In the end, I believe Time Warner will ultimately bear the brunt of the consumer back lash since they are not delivering the promised content. CBS just needs to sit back and listen to the applause once their content is restored.  

About a month ago, Time Warner Cable blacked out CBS in several major markets including Los Angeles, New York and Dallas, because of a dispute with CBS over pricing for retransmission fees. Both sides, of course, point fingers at the other with CBS saying that Time Warner Cable is not willing to pay fair value for their content. While Time Warner Cable is screaming that they’re overcharging. Similar to a parental dispute, caught in this mix are the children; Time Warner Cable & CBS customers. Customers have actually sued Time Warner Cable stating that Time Warner is depriving them of content they want, while still charging them full subscription rates. As Time Warner scrambles to appease its customers through replacement programming and… wait for it… free antennas, CBS is sitting back watching the millions of people being deprived of their content.

You know you’re in a bad spot when you’re a cable provider charging a premium to deliver content to people and have to offer them antennas to watch the content. Antennas which they could have used to get the content for free to begin with… on their own… without you. That would be like a bottled water company telling you to drink from the kitchen sink.

Regardless of the outcome, there are some lessons to be learned from both of them.

Content is king. Bottom line. CBS has the product that Time Warner’s customers are paying them to deliver. They’re the newspaper not giving the news out to the paperboy. Customers aren’t blaming CBS for the lack of content. They’re blaming Time Warner. The fact is that great content has tons of benefits for a business. Content… no… GOOD content provides everything from SEO value, social media and exposure, to blog traffic and press attention. In this case, Time Warner may have started with the upper hand since many shows are off for the season. So, the content that consumers were missing wasn’t as valued. That’s slowly changing as popular TV show season premieres and the NFL football season gets closer to beginning. I expect Time Warner customers will get more irate and vocal when they’re not able to watch their Dallas Cowboys or New York Giants playing football or get their weekly Homeland fix on Showtime. Even Wall Street is betting on CBS as “CBS shareholders have become richer while TWC shareholders have become poorer”, according to a Forbes article.

Our economy is based on supply and demand. In this case, CBS has the supply and it’s in demand. We can all safely predict that the reinstatement of CBS content on Time Warner cable is all but guaranteed. CBS will have more incentive to compromise as the loss of substantial advertising revenue from football and primetime broadcast shows increase. Time Warner will be increasingly under the gun to provide that programming to its customers.

In the end, I believe Time Warner will ultimately bear the brunt of the consumer back lash since they are not delivering the promised content. CBS just needs to sit back and listen to the applause once their content is restored.  

Sounds ridiculous, right? It’s real, however. A case study involving a pizza joint in New York has shown that offering ridiculous rewards can pay off. This particular pizza joint has several “over-the-top” rewards but none as much so as the promise of a free Ferrari delivered to you with your millionth purchase. What? Let’s put this into perspective. If a person were to make one purchase per day, it would take 2,740 YEARS to earn a free Ferrari. Obviously, it’s an impossible goal. What does it accomplish then? Their program is customer-relationship based so customers earn points towards rewards based on visits, not on the amount of money spent. These rewards gain attention not only from new and existing customers, but also through word of mouth. Everyone wants a free Ferrari, right? Their program also has some reachable rewards but even those are unique and fun. Rather than simply a free pizza or drink, it includes such items as engraved plaques for tables with the customer’s name. They also rely heavily on social media marketing to spread interest in their program. People think its fun and cool. It also gets them attention and gains them new customers through new enrollees in their rewards program despite the fact that at least one of these rewards is unreachable (and the customers know it).

Pizza joints must have different laws to follow in regards to their loyalty programs as I don’t know if a car dealership could get away with such a thing. I caution any car dealership who thinks about adding an unattainable offering to their existing loyalty program such a this to run it by their legal counsel, loyalty program administration company or compliance officer first. However, there’s something to be said about adding creative, outside-the-box rewards to your loyalty program. Making your program more interesting with creative rewards could add a little excitement and fun to it. Customers today are getting so used to businesses with loyalty cards/programs that’s its not as novel as it used to be. While any customer appreciates the free oil change they earned, it’s not something they particularly strive harder to achieve.

Being different can make you stand out from the crowd and gain attention that you otherwise might not have received. It also has the ability to generate new business simply out of excitement over the rewards. It’s marketable and, because of this, people will be more likely to share information about your program with their friends and family.

What kind of rewards would excite you? 

Sounds ridiculous, right? It’s real, however. A case study involving a pizza joint in New York has shown that offering ridiculous rewards can pay off. This particular pizza joint has several “over-the-top” rewards but none as much so as the promise of a free Ferrari delivered to you with your millionth purchase. What? Let’s put this into perspective. If a person were to make one purchase per day, it would take 2,740 YEARS to earn a free Ferrari. Obviously, it’s an impossible goal. What does it accomplish then? Their program is customer-relationship based so customers earn points towards rewards based on visits, not on the amount of money spent. These rewards gain attention not only from new and existing customers, but also through word of mouth. Everyone wants a free Ferrari, right? Their program also has some reachable rewards but even those are unique and fun. Rather than simply a free pizza or drink, it includes such items as engraved plaques for tables with the customer’s name. They also rely heavily on social media marketing to spread interest in their program. People think its fun and cool. It also gets them attention and gains them new customers through new enrollees in their rewards program despite the fact that at least one of these rewards is unreachable (and the customers know it).

Pizza joints must have different laws to follow in regards to their loyalty programs as I don’t know if a car dealership could get away with such a thing. I caution any car dealership who thinks about adding an unattainable offering to their existing loyalty program such a this to run it by their legal counsel, loyalty program administration company or compliance officer first. However, there’s something to be said about adding creative, outside-the-box rewards to your loyalty program. Making your program more interesting with creative rewards could add a little excitement and fun to it. Customers today are getting so used to businesses with loyalty cards/programs that’s its not as novel as it used to be. While any customer appreciates the free oil change they earned, it’s not something they particularly strive harder to achieve.

Being different can make you stand out from the crowd and gain attention that you otherwise might not have received. It also has the ability to generate new business simply out of excitement over the rewards. It’s marketable and, because of this, people will be more likely to share information about your program with their friends and family.

What kind of rewards would excite you? 

On Monday, June 3, Chrysler had a choice to make. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration asked them to recall 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokees and 2007 Jeep Libertys, according to this article in USA Today.  In this case, Chrysler didn’t agree with the data presented.  Not only that; but due to the reason for the recall; many speculated that Chrysler didn’t know how to fix the problem based on the vehicles’ design.

So now Chrysler had a dilemma. Should they comply with the NHTSA and issue a recall that they believe is based on bad data and which could cost hundreds of millions of dollars. Or should they refuse the recall, take their chances in court and expose themselves to what could be years of bad PR and severe damage to their reputation?

What is an automakers reputation worth? In this age of “safety first,” I would argue that “perception is reality.” A public that perceives a manufacturer’s vehicles to be unsafe will be less inclined to purchase their vehicles. This of course hurts sales across the board, increases ammunition for their competitors and will inevitably cost them market share.

I’m relatively certain that their public relations firm advised them that an event of this magnitude would take years to overcome. Chrysler has rebuilt itself from the brink of bankruptcy in 2009, (with more than a little help from the U.S. Government and taxpayers) to a company that is worth almost $6 billion today. To now turn around and defy the same administration that helped it would be akin to a stab in the back. With Fiat currently owning 58.5% of Chrysler and looking to purchase another 41.5% from the auto worker’s union, the PR damage would extend beyond Chrysler. Fiat intends to merge the two brands, which will create the 7^th largest auto-group by sales.

I’m fairly sure that Fiat doesn’t want to begin their purchase with damaged goods.  Even though the recall could end up costing hundreds of millions, that’s nothing compared to the $30 billion+ that Fiat has spent to acquire the remaining percentage that they will soon own.

From a public relations perspective, not only would the refusal to comply with the NHTSA hurt the Chrysler brand; it could also affect the Fiat brand. Fiat is currently the majority stakeholder in the automaker and consumers will inevitably end up equating any negative actions by Chrysler with the Fiat brand and visa-versa.

Hopefully, Chrysler will make the decision to preserve their brand integrity despite the high price tag. Consumer trust is hard to gain but easy to lose.

On Monday, June 3, Chrysler had a choice to make. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration asked them to recall 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokees and 2007 Jeep Libertys, according to this article in USA Today.  In this case, Chrysler didn’t agree with the data presented.  Not only that; but due to the reason for the recall; many speculated that Chrysler didn’t know how to fix the problem based on the vehicles’ design.

So now Chrysler had a dilemma. Should they comply with the NHTSA and issue a recall that they believe is based on bad data and which could cost hundreds of millions of dollars. Or should they refuse the recall, take their chances in court and expose themselves to what could be years of bad PR and severe damage to their reputation?

What is an automakers reputation worth? In this age of “safety first,” I would argue that “perception is reality.” A public that perceives a manufacturer’s vehicles to be unsafe will be less inclined to purchase their vehicles. This of course hurts sales across the board, increases ammunition for their competitors and will inevitably cost them market share.

I’m relatively certain that their public relations firm advised them that an event of this magnitude would take years to overcome. Chrysler has rebuilt itself from the brink of bankruptcy in 2009, (with more than a little help from the U.S. Government and taxpayers) to a company that is worth almost $6 billion today. To now turn around and defy the same administration that helped it would be akin to a stab in the back. With Fiat currently owning 58.5% of Chrysler and looking to purchase another 41.5% from the auto worker’s union, the PR damage would extend beyond Chrysler. Fiat intends to merge the two brands, which will create the 7^th largest auto-group by sales.

I’m fairly sure that Fiat doesn’t want to begin their purchase with damaged goods.  Even though the recall could end up costing hundreds of millions, that’s nothing compared to the $30 billion+ that Fiat has spent to acquire the remaining percentage that they will soon own.

From a public relations perspective, not only would the refusal to comply with the NHTSA hurt the Chrysler brand; it could also affect the Fiat brand. Fiat is currently the majority stakeholder in the automaker and consumers will inevitably end up equating any negative actions by Chrysler with the Fiat brand and visa-versa.

Hopefully, Chrysler will make the decision to preserve their brand integrity despite the high price tag. Consumer trust is hard to gain but easy to lose.

In my last article, I discussed what a Public Relations firm does. One of those tasks, which I hope you never need but is important to understand, is crisis management. Not every company is going to go off the deep end like Amy’s Baking Company, or something worse. BUT, most companies will experience crisis of varying degrees throughout their business’s lives. So, whether you use a Public Relations firm or not, I thought this article might be useful in guiding you towards successfully handling and minimizing any damage.

Create a Plan Before Taking Action!

This is extremely important as many companies react without considering the ramifications of those actions. Assemble all your management staff and analyze the situation. Decide just how damaging the crisis could be and make sure, before anyone leaves, that there is a plan in place and everyone knows it. If you have a Public Relations firm, make sure that they are involved and help guide you. Ensure that everyone knows the official response, but choose one person to be the spokesperson for this crisis and stick with it. Just like the game of telephone, the more people you have answering questions, the more likely it will be that things get changed. After this initial management meeting, hold a company-wide meeting and mandate that nobody is to speak about this to any media, or address it in any way. Let them know who the spokesperson is and tell them to refer any questions to that person.

Discover the Problem

Make sure you identify the true problem, not just the reason for the crisis. Identify where it began, what went wrong and why.

Take Action – Fast!

In today’s world of social media, news can, and will, spread like wildfire. Be prepared to act fast. The longer you take to act, the more oxygen you allow to fuel the fire. Reassure the public that you are aware of the problem and are addressing it. Make sure that you are accurate and honest in your response and the information included. If you’re not, people will find out and you’ll only make matters worse. Your statement should also be brief. There’s no need to elaborate or write a thesis. Say what needs to be said but do it as concisely as possible.

Do Not Neglect Online Activity

Make sure that you are monitoring every social media channel, blogs and any media coverage regarding the crisis. Make sure that your statement is heard on all of them. There are many free tools available that will monitor the Internet for your company’s name and other relevant keywords that you can use to assist you with this. Overall, you should always be doing this; but it’s especially important during a crisis situation.

Hopefully, you’ll never face a crisis that warrants this type of attention. That being said, even the smallest of issues, in the hands of the wrong person, can be blown out of proportion. For example, something may have happened to a customer, or a friend of a customer that you may consider small, or may not even be aware of. However, this customer is extremely upset and feels the need to make this known. This customer could ,have the knowledge and ability to spread the story, and it can damage your reputation above and beyond any negative online review ever could. People can be extremely vigilant and ruthless in their quest for “justice”.​

I hope that the tips provided above are helpful.  The most important lesson to learn is to be prepared and to react analytically with a cool head and well formed plan.