Monthly Archives: January 2011
There is Such a Thing as Bad Publicity
I recently went to visit a customer, and when I got there it was clear he was having a bad day.
“We just got a call from the local news, they are asking for a company representative to appear on the ten o’clock news.”
At this point, I was having trouble seeing where the problem was. So far it sounded like an opportunity to get the business name out to everyone in the city. Then he finished his statement.
“One of our company trucks was just in an accident. Apparently he drove the truck right into the side of a house.”
The good news was that nobody was hurt, and the company had all the insurance and legal help it needed to keep the incident from causing any immediate financial damage beyond the repair bill for the house and the truck.
One Accident can Ruin Your Reputation
Of course, for the business owner, the issue was not so much about the accident as it was about his company’s reputation. How was this going to look in the press? How many customers were going to see it? How was this incident going to impact his bottom line?
Companies can spend significant resources on building up a brand image, and with good reason. If your business name is well respected in the community, then you may have a big step up on your competition.
But there are so many ways that an irresponsible moment by an employee can tarnish the company’s image. Speeding, an accident, even a lunchtime stop at an innapropriate business establishment can change the perception of your brand, giving your competition an advantage that they did not have to work for.
If you are a faithful reader of my blog, you know that I often talk about how one of the most important benefits of implementing a fleet monitoring solution is the “behavior modification” effect the system has on employees. They may not like having a tracker in the vehicle, but most employees will slow down and stop doing things they are not supposed to be doing when they know that the boss could be watching.