How to take a stand without creating a PR crisis

Pepperoni, mushrooms and onions are fine, but hold the political commentary.

Corporate social responsibility is a requirement for doing business in the 21st Century. Consumers make buying decisions based on company ethics and potential employees use it to decide where they want to work. When done right, it can be a powerful tool for advancing your brand. When done wrong, however, it can throw your company into crisis mode.

Take, for example, Pizza Inn’s recent PR blunder. The day before rioters executed their act of sedition at the capitol last week, the purveyor of pizza pies issued a news release espousing its views about the need for election reform. Say what?!

It is clear from his quotes in the news release that Pizza Inn’s parent company CEO Brandon Solano has strong views about the outcome of our recent presidential election. Should he have gone public with them? NO!

Granted, Solano could not have known the mayhem that would unfold a day later, but even if he had, this was not the issue on which to take a stand. Fortunately, the company realized this and took the news release down.

What Did Others Do?

Most other companies have chosen not to weigh in on the politics of the November election and all that has followed, but after…