A recent example is American Apparel. When
Hurricane Sandy threatened millions of homes on the East Coast of the US in
2012, American Apparel decided to offer 20 percent off just in case people were
“bored
during the storm”. American Apparel may have the best intention to offer
discount and tried to be light-hearted, but it could not pick a worse line. Naturally, it became one
of the biggest PR disasters for 2012.
This distasteful campaign does not seem to
be the outcome of a thoughtful plan. If American Apparel’s objective was to
increase sales that was supposed to cheer people up, they should not have
picked a disaster. A rainy day would be ok, but not a hurricane. Moreover, the
timing was awful as it was in the middle of a natural disaster. It was also reported that American Apparel
sent this sales messages to its fans where Hurricane Sandy was supposed to
cause the most damage such as New
York and New Jersey.
Worst of all, American Apparel seemed to
have forgotten their core audience – college-aged people and young professionals.
This demographic group is extremely web savvy, and in general is conscious with
social justice. American Apparel’s message used for this campaign was sure to
create controversy, and it went viral instantly. Angry messages were all over
the place within minutes after the 36-hour campaign was announced.
Clearly PR campaigns can be tongue-in-cheek, but
there is a limit. American Apparel stepped over the boundary, and this
Hurricane Sandy campaign was “revolting” according to some. I do not know the
process of formulating a campaign within American Apparel, but the campaign may
not have run if one person in the marketing or PR department showed any
discomfort. In PR, you need careful planning. However, it is equally important
to have the courage to have a different opinion.
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