Business Intelligence Alert

    In today’s information age, customers have access to various digital platforms to access and share information. Customers also use these platforms to communicate with service providers, share opinions, and provide feedback. Therefore, it is important for product owners and service providers to be ready with a response plan for all communications over digital platforms. You are a regional marketing director of a theme park and responsible for designing marketing strategy for the reopening of the park. Each department is helping you with the relevant and required information. As the date of reopening of the parks gets closer, the business intelligence unit of the organization in the scenario has noticed a surge of negative opinions among consumers. This is evident not only on social media platforms but also across a host of other digital media platforms, such as the organization’s websites and other digital information sources. A major cause of concern is that the organization’s ethics are being questioned in most of these negative opinions. The business intelligence unit has sent a memo to share their concerns. The CMO has asked you to respond to this memo by creating a recommendation report. Prompt Write a recommendation report, in a memo format, to the CMO of the organization in the course scenario, describing the strategies to minimize the negative opinion from consumers. Refer to the Business Intelligence Memo to ensure adjustments and additions to the plan for stopping negative publicity. In your memo, emphasize the need for cross-functional effort alignment, crisis management, social media response methods, and CSR communications. Specifically, you must address the following criteria: Describe how you must now pivot from your previous plan to introduce strategic changes to stop negative publicity. Which two steps will you take to effectively address the negative publicity related to the park re-opening? Describe the cross-functional effort alignment. How can the organization’s sales and operations departments help address the negative publicity? How can you use marketing channels to communicate the safety measures to the customers? Explain how a crisis communication plan can improve the organization’s image, when aligned with ethical practices. How would you use your public relations efforts in crisis communication? How would you use your corporate website for crisis communication? Describe the social media response methods to be used in this scenario. How would you address negative comments? How would you answer the safety-related questions? Describe the corporate social responsibility (CSR) communications strategy in this scenario. What are the key CSR initiatives and policies for the organization? What are the key channels of communicating the CSR initiatives?

Sample Solution

   

Memorandum

To: CMO From: Regional Marketing Director Date: August 4, 2023 Subject: Recommendation Report to Minimize Negative Opinion from Consumers

Background

The business intelligence unit has identified a surge in negative opinions among consumers on various digital platforms, including social media, the organization's websites, and other digital information sources. A major cause of concern is that the organization's ethics are being questioned in most of these negative opinions.

Full Answer Section

    Impact This negative publicity has the potential to damage the organization's reputation and discourage consumers from visiting the theme park after it reopens. Recommendations In light of this new information, I recommend that we pivot from our previous marketing plan and introduce the following strategic changes to stop negative publicity and minimize its impact:
  • Cross-functional effort alignment: We need to align our efforts across all departments, including marketing, sales, operations, and public relations, to develop and implement a comprehensive response plan. This will ensure that we are presenting a unified message and taking a coordinated approach to addressing the negative publicity.
  • Crisis communication: We need to develop and implement a crisis communication plan that is aligned with our ethical practices. This plan should outline how we will communicate with consumers, the media, and other stakeholders during a crisis. It should also include procedures for monitoring social media and other digital platforms for negative sentiment and responding to it quickly and effectively.
  • Social media response methods: We need to develop and implement social media response methods to address the negative comments and safety-related questions that we are receiving. These methods should be timely, respectful, and transparent.
Specifically, I recommend the following two steps to effectively address the negative publicity related to the park re-opening:
  1. Conduct a comprehensive audit of our digital presence to identify all instances of negative sentiment. This will help us to understand the scope of the problem and to prioritize our response.
  2. Develop and implement a targeted social media campaign to address the negative sentiment. This campaign should use positive language and messaging to highlight the organization's commitment to safety, ethics, and customer satisfaction.
Cross-functional effort alignment To ensure cross-functional effort alignment, I recommend that we establish a crisis management team that includes representatives from all relevant departments. This team will be responsible for developing and implementing the crisis communication plan and social media response methods. Sales and operations departments The sales and operations departments can help to address the negative publicity by developing and implementing new safety measures and customer service initiatives. They can also work with the marketing department to develop and implement the targeted social media campaign. Marketing channels To communicate the safety measures to customers, we can use a variety of marketing channels, including the park's website, social media accounts, email marketing, and paid advertising. We can also develop educational materials and brochures that explain the safety measures in detail. Crisis communication plan A crisis communication plan can improve the organization's image when aligned with ethical practices by demonstrating the organization's commitment to transparency, accountability, and customer safety. The plan should be based on the organization's values and should be developed in consultation with key stakeholders. Public relations efforts Our public relations efforts in crisis communication can focus on building relationships with key media outlets and influencers. We can also use press releases and media interviews to communicate our message and to respond to negative publicity. Corporate website We can use our corporate website to communicate our message and to respond to negative publicity by posting regular updates, FAQs, and blog posts. We can also use the website to highlight the organization's commitment to safety and ethics. Social media response methods To address negative comments on social media, we should respond promptly and respectfully. We should also be transparent and honest in our responses. When answering safety-related questions, we should provide clear and concise information. Conclusion I believe that by implementing the strategic changes outlined in this report, we can effectively address the negative publicity and minimize its impact. By working together as a team and by aligning our efforts across all departments, we can demonstrate our commitment to safety, ethics, and customer satisfaction.  

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