Taco Bell Goes Photo Loco
It’s Monday morning and you’re still feeling sleepy from your crazy weekend. You manage to pull yourself out of your bed and get ready for work. You sit down at your desk, turn on your computer and begin your daily routine of scanning the web for client news. It’s the morning scan; your favorite time of day.
While some of us may dread combing through hundreds of articles in financial publications for a quote or mention of our client, there is one think we can be thankful for this week. We can be thankful we’re not the PR guy for Taco Bell. Mr. Taco Bell PR guy is having the worst week ever.
For those of who you don’t know why Mr. Taco Bell PR guy is having the worst week ever, let me summarize. Last week, a Taco Bell employee was terminated after a photo showing him licking a stack of empty taco shells went viral. This photo caused a serious headache for the Taco Bell PR team as they tried to explain the incident to their very skeptical customers.
The photo was apparently taken back in March at a Taco Bell location in California. Allegedly, it was for an internal contest to show employees enjoying their first bite of the new Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Tacos. The contest grew out of hand when a photo, which hadn’t been submitted to the contest, ended up being posted on an employee’s Facebook page. Posting the photo to Facebook was not only a violation of company policy, but the worker also violated Taco Bell's food handling procedure. The media jumped all over this story.
Currently, there are hundreds and hundreds of articles circling the web reporting on the Taco Bell news. That’s going to be one heck of a coverage report. Let’s all hope that none of our clients have a Taco Bell moment in their future.
The media scan is a valuable tool that can not only create opportunities for our clients to share their story, but it can be equally important in helping to keep our clients out of a negative story. The media scan is the foundation for developing relationships with the right reporters. Who you know and the more you know will be instrumental in executing a successful media strategy. 