Transcript Week Two – Communication FINAL

COMMUNICATIONS
SHOCKER! PR REQUIRES COMMUNICATION
Tylenol Case Study
What Happened
 Sept. 10, 1982 – Johnson & Johnson management learned that its premiere product,
Extra-Strength Tylenol, had been used to kill three people.
 And over the next few days, three more people died from swallowing Tylenol capsules
loaded with cyanide.
The Background
 At the time, Tylenol held 35% of the $1 billion market and Johnson & Johnson had not
been – nor ever had to be – a very high-profile company. CEO James Burke had never
appeared on TV or done interviews.
Johnson & Johnson’s Reaction
 Immediately, Johnson & Johnson open its doors to the media.
 Even though the company was confident that the poisonings had not occurred at any of
its plants, they recalled 93,000 bottles associated with the Chicago murders. And they
communicated warnings to doctors, hospitals, distributors and suspended all advertising.
Tylenol Case Study
Johnson & Johnson’s Reaction (cont.)
 However, the FBI was worried about copycat poisonings; and after one occurred in
California five days later, Johnson & Johnson did not hesitate and willingly recalled all
Extra-Strength Tylenol – 31 million bottles – at a loss of more than $100 million.
 Johnson & Johnson resumed limited advertising, but with a focused message promising
to exchange capsules for tablets and continued aggressive grassroots PR through letters
to the trade and statements to the media.
 Johnson & Johnson went on to offer a $100,000 reward for the killer(s).
The Public’s Reaction
 Johnson & Johnson commissioned a survey which found 87% of Tylenol users did not
blame the company, but 61% still said they were not likely to buy Tylenol capsules in the
future.
The Relaunch
 The company shocked the business and marketing communities by planning an
aggressive relaunch of the product in a new triple-safety-sealed, tamper-resistant
package.
Tylenol Case Study
The Relaunch (cont.)
 An all-out PR/media blitz was launched to ensure the public understood its commitment,
including a bold invitation to 60 Minutes to film and investigate their internal strategy
sessions in preparation of the new product launch.
The Result
 Mike Wallace said that although Wall Street had written off the company, it was now,
“hedging its bets because of Johnson & Johnson’s stunning campaign of facts, money, the
media, and truth.”
 By early 1983, Tylenol had recaptured 95% of its prior market share and company morale
was higher than ever.
Tylenol Case Study: Round 2
What Happened
 Feb. 6, 1986 – A woman in Yonkers, NY died after taking poisoned Tylenol capsules.
 A hotline, the company set-up after the first incident, received 15,000 phone calls.
Johnson & Johnson’s Reaction
 CEO Burke held a press conference the very next day – “I’m heartsick. We didn’t believe
it could happen again, and nobody else did either.”
 Production of Tylenol capsules was halted permanently, costing the company more than
$150 million.
 Johnson & Johnson offered to replace all capsules with new Tylenol caplets, a solid form
of medication less tamper-prone.
The Public’s Reaction
 Just two weeks after the tragedy, President Reagan said, “Jim Burke of Johnson &
Johnson, you have our deepest appreciation for living up to the highest ideals of
corporate responsibility and grace under pressure.”
 Today, nearly 30 years after the first issue, in virtually every study of corporate
reputation, Johnson & Johnson is rated #1.
Goals of Communication
To INFORM – Education or increased awareness
is often the impetus of public relations work
2. To PERSUADE – To change opinions and
behaviors
3. To MOTIVATE – To push people toward action
4. To BUILD MUTAL UNDERSTANDING – Both
being understood and truly understanding others
1.
Pat Jackson Said…
PR is just communication but don’t forget:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Research is never optional.
Behavior Change is what matters.
PR is about relationships.
Face-to-Face communication is the only way to
build real relationships.
Involvement = Ownership.
Behavioral Public Relations Model
Awareness
RARELY
USUALLY
Latent
Readiness
OCCASIONALLY
USUALLY
Triggering
Events
Intermediate
Behavior
Relationship
Building
ULTIMATE
DESIRED
BEHAVIOR
More Contemporary Theories of Communication
Blah, Blah,
Blah,…. A quick
break into the
communication
of real PR
professionals
hard at work….
Stuff PR
People Say
PR & Communication – Words
Words are
powerful.
Words, and
their
meanings,
are always
changing.
Words mean
different
things to
different
people.
Side Note: GENIUS insight from your book
“Words such as
firemen, manpower,
housewife, cripple,
midget, and Negro
may be considered
offensive.”
“A person who is thin my
indeed be considered highly
attractive. But along came 50
Cent and Kanye West and
Jay-Z and hip-hop, and
pretty soon “phat” became
one of the baddest of the bad
and the coolest of the cool.”
PR & Communication – The Message
The main point: Our job as
PR professionals is to use
words to build messages that
move people to action.
But what
makes a
message?
Surprise! No
one can
agree on
what exactly
constitutes a
message!
Three Popular “Message” Explanations
 The CONTENT is the message.
 Intent is most important – neither the medium nor the
communicator is as important as the content itself.
 The MEDIUM is the message.
 Content is important, but less important (and MUST be
influenced) by the medium by which it is being delivered.
(Marshall McLuhan)
 The PERSON is the message.
 The communicator – and their charisma and ability to
persuade – is the most important element.
PR & Communications: Receiver’s Bias
 Stereotypes – An influence on both the creators and the




consumers
Symbols – Powerful triggers of emotion/recognition
Semantics – The words we choose have consequences.
Peer Groups – Peer pressure is no joke.
Media – They set the agenda; they filter and shape the news
and often dictate what is important.
PR & Communication: Feedback
Does a press release exist if no one writes about it?
Messages can trigger the following effects on receivers:
1. Change Attitudes – Hard to achieve, rarely happens.
2. Crystallize Attitudes – Push someone over the edge;
may influence someone to do something they were
already thinking about doing.
3. Create Seed of Doubt – Force people to modify or
rethink their original opinions.
4. Nothing – Changing attitudes and motivating action
takes time.
In conclusion…
 PR is all about good communication.
 Learning how and when and to whom to
communicate is the primary skill of PR.
 Communication should be honest, straightforward,
and credible.
 In addition to mastering the techniques of PR,
knowledge, experience, hard work and common
sense are the basic guiding principles.
How do you know if your message landed?
If you can figure it out
you will be a millionaire.
Unsolicited Career Advice #3
Never leave home without
your duct tape and some
Sharpies.
And now, your assignment…
Who: You. Have a job. You either work for:
 Mitt Romney’s campaign manager
 Costa Concordia’s PR manager
What: Create a coverage report. Select, read and analyze at least five recent
articles about your client and/or their competition. Write brief summaries of
each article and an overall summary of the coverage as a whole.
When: Due Thursday, Feb. 2
Where: Bring it to class Thursday, Feb. 2 or else
Why: Because this is something you will actually have to do in your first PR job. A
lot. The goal is to make it simple for your boss – she doesn’t have to track down
the stories – you have found them, and provided clean, concise analysis. You
should be focused on what is being said, what the media is focusing on, the
media’s different angles (you need to find multiple voices/opinions), and how
the competition is responding, so as to help inform overarching strategy. Think
hard about how you can make it easier more useful for your boss.