Reputation

The start of the year means many things: new goals, fresh opportunities and, of course, the annual Trust Barometer report from Edelman. This indicator of global attitudes has been a sobering read during the past few years. It’s not too much different in 2018, although media’s low trust factor hasn’t slipped too much.

Many companies measure their reputation via a yearly poll. Others wait until a crisis hits to commission a survey about how stakeholders perceive their company. Still others feel measuring reputation should be an ongoing operation. This fourth article in our series with PublicRelay discusses the best ways to measure reputation and why it’s important to do so.

The Time’s Up movement took the spotlight at the 75th Annual Golden Globes. From the first words spoken by host Seth Meyers, “Good evening, ladies and remaining gentlemen,” the issue that has consumed Hollywood for months was felt in both subtle and overt ways. Here are three of the top Time’s Up messaging moments—from Debra Messing’s red carpet interview to Natalie Portman’s cutting one-liner—from Sunday’s star-studded event.

Throughout his long career playing baseball, Derek Jeter was thought to have the PR sense of a crafty politician. Little if anything stuck to him. In just a few months as CEO and co-owner of the Florida Marlins, though, he seemingly has torched his good name by unloading the team’s top talent and several other questionable moves. Here are suggestions designed to help him repair his public image.

Over the past two months, the #MeToo movement has sparked a long-overdue national conversation around sexual harassment. And now, one of the nation’s biggest companies is moving beyond talk to action. Microsoft has announced that it would end the common corporate practice of “forced arbitration,” which requires victims of sexual harassment to settle cases privately rather than through a court of law. Will other companies follow its lead?

The fires in California have brought devastation to people, property and animals in the Golden State since the beginning of the month. While some fires continue to rage, those in the area of the Ojai Valley Inn have been contained. Faced with a large clean-up, the Inn refused to cut corners and instead will remain closed into 2018, resulting in a large financial loss as it will miss prime holiday weeks. Its decision to remain closed is firmly rooted in its brand promise.

Communicators and marketers know brands must impress customers and employees. A new study shows there’s a gap between the image that brands portray to the public and what their own employees think of the brand based on their work experience.

Over the weekend, four brands announced they would not advertise on Sean Hannity’s Fox News program, but none felt the backlash quite like Keurig, as videos of people smashing its machines lit up Twitter. The violent response underscores the tricky situation brands are in when caught in the crossfire of a politically charged controversy. Keurig first faced backlash for its inaction. When it took a stand, it faced another angry wave of protests.

It’s no secret that audiences respond more readily to their peers’ brand engagement than they do to messaging that comes directly from brands themselves. But what can communicators do to convert those engaged users into brand advocates?

Stacey DePolo, who manages social media and advocacy at domain and business services provider GoDaddy, considers that question often. She works daily to build GoDaddy’s community of brand advocates, which she defines as “a group of people who are passionate about a brand, product or cause that promotes their community either in person or online.”

The opening of PRSA’s International Conference featured a bevy of technology exhibitors, a plethora of PRSSA members and the wisdom of filmmaker and storyteller Morgan Spurlock. The super-sized presentation from Spurlock was highly entertaining and contained several good tips about content creation.