XPost: alt.business.accountability, alt.fan.rush-limbaugh, alt.transgendered   
   XPost: talk.politics.guns   
   From: bankruptcy@splcenter.org   
      
   On 20 Dec 2021, Rudy Canoza  posted some   
   news:oe5wJ.136933$aF1.18387@fx98.iad:   
      
   > Budweiser shit on 100 years of customers and they think they can get   
   > away with it.   
      
   Since March Madness, Bud Light, owned by Anheuser-Busch, has been mired in   
   controversy over its partnership with transgender influencer Dylan   
   Mulvaney. Usually, social commentary fades after 48 hours. However, Bud   
   Light experienced an unexpected escalation of customer rage, amplified by   
   influential media, resulting in a boycott that has defied all expectations   
   and is now entering an unprecedented third month.   
      
   The first rule of crisis management: Stop the bleeding   
   Nationwide, Bud Light sales have shrunk by more than 25% versus a year ago   
   during the week ended May 20. Sales of other Anheuser-Busch brands also   
   dropped: Budweiser -11.2%; Michelob Ultra -6.5% and Natural Light -4.9%   
   for the same period.   
      
   “We’ve never seen such a dramatic shift in national share in such a short   
   period of time,” Beer Business Daily commented.   
      
   “I’m stunned by how widespread the impact has been felt,” said Beer   
   Marketer’s insights editor Benj Steinman. “It tells you that the hit is   
   not just red and rural.”   
      
   Anheuser-Busch stock fell 18% from Apr. 1 to Jun. 2, losing more than 23   
   billion in market capitalization due to the crisis, while the S&P500 was   
   up 3.8 % for the same period. The Anheuser-Busch position is particularly   
   perilous now as the crucial summer selling season begins.   
      
   In what could turn out to be a new major challenge, the U.S. Environmental   
   Protection Agency announced this week that Anheuser-Busch agreed to pay   
   $537,000 to settle allegations it failed to comply with chemical accident   
   prevention regulations and will improve safety operations at 11 of its   
   flagship breweries that use anhydrous ammonia, which is dangerous to the   
   skin, eyes, and lungs.   
      
   ‘The difference between mere management and leadership is communication’   
   –Winston Churchill   
   The digital world has become omnipresent. Yet, many corporate cultures,   
   boards, executives, and advisors have not adapted to the immediate nature   
   of its impact.   
      
   Evidently, corporate leaders have not learned about the speed and   
   magnitude of social media from the Silicon Valley Bank disaster, the   
   modern-day bank run that was accelerated by instant digital commentary. In   
   a single day, customers withdrew $42 billion.   
      
   While these disasters are not equivalent, in the middle of a crisis,   
   Anheuser-Busch seemed to have little understanding of the internet’s   
   instant influence, probably due to executive hubris and minimal   
   communication with customers.   
      
   CEOs and boards must fully embrace their company’s public stance. They   
   must exude authority, accountability, leadership, and confidence as they   
   guide the company’s public image with unwavering resolve.   
      
   Instead, Bud Light issued an ineffective statement four days after the   
   blowback from the campaign began. And it took Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan   
   Whitworth almost two weeks to issue an indecisive apology.   
      
   Part of the fury was undoubtedly triggered by management’s failure to take   
   ownership of the campaign–or alternatively, address customer concerns over   
   the sponsorship.   
      
   ‘If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every   
   battle’ –Sun Tzu   
   Since March, no matter which CEO or board I speak with about crisis or   
   reputation, the Bud Light disaster monopolizes the discussion.   
      
   What insights did other CEOs gain from this prolonged Bud Light uproar?   
   Apparently, not much. Brands like Maybelline and Target have faced a   
   similar backlash on social media.   
      
   It was utterly surprising that Target CEO Brian Cornell took a somewhat   
   analogous approach to Bud Light during the ongoing crisis. Target stock   
   was down 15% and lost more than $11 billion in market capitalization from   
   May 1 to June 2, slipping to the lowest level since 2020, while the S&P   
   was up 3% for the same period. It’s almost a living case study of what not   
   to do.   
      
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)