A diamond in the tar ball?

Suspended plume-like, deep in the first official BPGlobalPR press release is a kernel of truth all marketers should consider:

You know the best way to get the public to respect your brand?  Have a respectable brand.  Offer a great, innovative product and make responsible, ethical business decisions.  Lead the pack! 

This advice rings true for all brands, not just the ocean fouling kind.  While obviously irreverent and occasionally sophomoric, the spoof BPGlobalPR Twitter stream is touching a nerve.  Over 110,000 Twitter followers are tuning-in to this unlikely authority.  Humor and a shared sense of outrage are certainly key drivers.  I believe the followers are also responding to the dissonance created when traditional corporate messaging with it's "put a good face on it at all costs" philosophy runs headlong into 24/7 coverage of a truly awful situation.

Social media has created a platform for viral public response that is forcing PR people to consider a new approach to "crisis management." Clearly, the old model just backfired. In a transparent marketplace, a company's words have to match the pictures.  There are no more short-term fixes delivered by a deft spokesperson.  It's not a PR problem.  It's a marketing problem and a brand's character and past behavior are the only valid tools in a situation like this.  A lack of sincerity at the press room podium will only add fuel to the fire.

See the entire press release here.