A good company and public image is so very important. Here's a true story that's going on right now.
But first, since this blog is often about marketing, imagine this with me, if you will:
Imagine if you ran a world-famous company. Imagine that your company is deeply concerned about so-called "Corporate Social Responsibility." Imagine if your company makes an effort to be genuinely concerned about protecting the environment... I'm not talking about Global Warming; I'm talking about a genuine concern for not polluting the air, lakes, oceans, and keeping our world cleaner and nicer for our children and our children's children.
Wouldn't that be wonderful?
Imagine then, if you had an employee (or executive) who was a big game hunter and killed an endangered species of animal and then posted it all over the Internet.
I think I might be a tad bit upset and wonder about that employee's lack of common sense.
My Japanese wife saw this picture and heard the entire story.
Her reaction? "Is this woman dumb?"
Well that's what happened and it is just now, as you read, becoming a topic on Facebook.
Her name is Michele Leqve. I name her publicly as she is a already a public figure and has announced on the Internet through her Facebook community, and with articles she writes - that include photos - of the animals she kills on her hunts.
Here is public information about her hobby on a site called, Women Hunters - For Women, About Women, By Women:
Michele Leqve has only been bow hunting for the past 11 years, and in that time, she has taken many, big game animals and has 9 different species!...
...To date, Michele has hunted for 10 North American Big Game species which include: Elk, Antelope, Mule Deer, Whitetail Deer, Coues Deer, Black Bear, Polar Bear, Quebec Labrador Caribou, Central Canadian Caribou and Woodland Caribou (this does not include any of the African species she has hunted.)
Unfortunately, for her and her company, besides showing photos that are sure to upset a lot of people, Michele names her employer on Linkedin! I can bet that this might become a nightmare for that company. The noise is brewing and building up over at Facebook.
Think she could ever get or keep a job at Disney? No?
How about other companies that serve all ages and groups?
Unfortunately, for her and her company, besides showing photos that are sure to upset a lot of people, Michele names her employer on Linkedin! I can bet that this might become a nightmare for that company. The noise is brewing and building up over at Facebook.
Now, I have no problem with hunting. I did it when I was a kid. But we always ate what we hunted. I do though have a bit of a problem believing that this white woman eats the polar bear she hunts. If she were an eskimo then maybe. Someone correct me if I have a double standard here.
You know this lady would hunt elephant or Rhino if it were legal.
Why is this woman's "hobby" a possible public relations nightmare? Well, check this out the chatter that is starting on Facebook:
This is Michelle Leqve an air hostess, who judging by the amount of self publicity is relishing her new found notoriety and proud achievement of being one of the first women to slaughter a polar bear with a High Powered Bow and a lot of help from dogs.
The exhausted Polar Bear was chased across Miles of open snow and finally brought to Bay by a team of Husky’s on her hunting trip to Canada.
According to Michelle’s own Publicity and testimony she loves animals but unfortunately this alone was not enough to save the Polar Bear so she decided instead to shoot a number of arrows into his body, While the Bear was trying to fend off the dogs.
The Polar Bear Died amidst the onslaught and is now a stuffed exhibit in a Sport shop in Canada
Canada is the only country in the world to legally allow Trophy Hunting of Polar Bears.
The exhausted Polar Bear was chased across Miles of open snow and finally brought to Bay by a team of Husky’s on her hunting trip to Canada.
According to Michelle’s own Publicity and testimony she loves animals but unfortunately this alone was not enough to save the Polar Bear so she decided instead to shoot a number of arrows into his body, While the Bear was trying to fend off the dogs.
The Polar Bear Died amidst the onslaught and is now a stuffed exhibit in a Sport shop in Canada
Canada is the only country in the world to legally allow Trophy Hunting of Polar Bears.
The Facebook poster who uploaded this picture and comment has asked that people complain and raise hell about this woman. There is also a listing of how to complain to her employer.
There's all sorts of things people do that some people don't like. People can do as they please, I believe... (I have a problem with killing endangered species, though...) But this post is not about personal freedoms or the rights of humans. It is about corporate public image, stupidity and the sh*t storm that follows when someone puts photos like this up on public forums like Facebook. This is like those fools who take videos of themselves doing 250 mph in their cars then load it up to Youtube then get upset when they get arrested later on.
If I were her employer, I would certainly demand that she cease placing photos like this on the internet and making this "hobby" public domain - or at least demand that she have enough brains to not list me as her employer...
Yes, dear, this woman is dumb to place photos like this on the Internet.
Like I said, I can imagine that this could become a public relations nightmare for her company which is probably one of the biggest and most famous companies in America!
So, her employer does a great job upping their public image... Michelle then posts photos on the Internet that are sure to piss off the masses. Her employer is a good company I wonder how such as person like Michelle who shows zero common sense ever got a job there?
I just wrote yesterday how people need to do more to protect their privacy. That this woman would place photos like this on the Internet, just shows, to me, a total lack or common sense. And why brag to people she doesn't even know at Facebook?
There's a heck of a lot more people reading about this over at Facebook than read this blog! If I were her employer, I'd be furious. I wonder how this is going to turn out? If you were PR director of her company, how would you handle this?
UPDATE: I mentioned the dummies who take videos of themselves speeding then posting on Youtube? What timing! I just saw this right now:
Yahoo! reports in: Donald Trump’s sons criticized after brutal hunting photos released
There's all sorts of things people do that some people don't like. People can do as they please, I believe... (I have a problem with killing endangered species, though...) But this post is not about personal freedoms or the rights of humans. It is about corporate public image, stupidity and the sh*t storm that follows when someone puts photos like this up on public forums like Facebook. This is like those fools who take videos of themselves doing 250 mph in their cars then load it up to Youtube then get upset when they get arrested later on.
If I were her employer, I would certainly demand that she cease placing photos like this on the internet and making this "hobby" public domain - or at least demand that she have enough brains to not list me as her employer...
Yes, dear, this woman is dumb to place photos like this on the Internet.
Like I said, I can imagine that this could become a public relations nightmare for her company which is probably one of the biggest and most famous companies in America!
So, her employer does a great job upping their public image... Michelle then posts photos on the Internet that are sure to piss off the masses. Her employer is a good company I wonder how such as person like Michelle who shows zero common sense ever got a job there?
I just wrote yesterday how people need to do more to protect their privacy. That this woman would place photos like this on the Internet, just shows, to me, a total lack or common sense. And why brag to people she doesn't even know at Facebook?
There's a heck of a lot more people reading about this over at Facebook than read this blog! If I were her employer, I'd be furious. I wonder how this is going to turn out? If you were PR director of her company, how would you handle this?
UPDATE: I mentioned the dummies who take videos of themselves speeding then posting on Youtube? What timing! I just saw this right now:
A doctor in Japan has landed himself in trouble with the police after posting footage of his drive in a Ferrari sports car on YouTube. He is facing charges of exceeding the speed limit after the footage showed him driving at 124km/h (77mph) in a 40km/h zone, police say. The 50-year-old doctor, from Okawa in Fukuoka Prefecture, was reported to police by angry YouTube users. He reportedly said he "wanted people to understand the beauty of a Ferrari". (BBC)
UPDATE 2: The timing couldn't be better. Now, just four days after I wrote this article criticizing this woman's judgement and common sense for placing photos of herself with a polar bear she killed on the Internet, here's a scandal about the Trump boys doing the exact same thing that I wrote about. If this doesn't prove that my point is 100% correct, I don't know what does!
At least Donald Trump's sons don't have to worry what employer's think.
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