Fixing Corporate Reputations

We all want to be loved. Even Big Corporations. With the release of the latest Annual Reputation Quotient from Harris Interactive, you can bet there is some hand-wringing in board rooms all over the country.

As a former public relations person who was often called upon to make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear, I am eagerly awaiting the face-saving measures that will follow this ranking of the nation’s top 60 corporations.

Who would you guess is at the bottom? Think war profiteering. That’s right: Haliburton. Whenever I hear the name I have a mental picture of Dick Cheney’s jowls shaking as he tells a big fat lie. I can’t wait to see their new commercials, featuring cute little girls in fields of daisies. With puppies. And butterflies.

The Harris methodology is complicated. The respondents answered questions about their familiarity with the company, their perception of the company’s social responsibility, and their emotional connection to the company. Their willingness to act was also measured. Would they buy their products and services? Would they recommend them to a friend?

I won’t bore you with the science. Why do that when I can just offer my own opinions (not those of this newspaper)?

Joining Haliburton in the Rogue’s Gallery are some familiar names: oil companies like Citgo and ExxonMobil (booooo!); communications companies who have stopped offering customer support (Comcast and Sprint); and everybody’s most-reviled airline, Northwest, whose new motto is “Advertised departure times are merely a suggestion. For more accurate flight data, you may purchase a genuine faux crystal ball from your flight attendant for $13. Correct change appreciated.”

Rounding out the bottom 25% are old favorites like Sears, Ford, and General Motors—former giants who have fallen on hard times because of their failure to keep ahead of the changing market.

So, who’s at the top? That would be the local company whose goofy name has become generic for “searching online.” Our friends at Google enjoy a reputation for leadership in social responsibility, financial performance, and workplace environment (unless you’re over 30, I’m told.)

Coming in second overall but ranking first in emotional appeal and products and services, is Johnson & Johnson, whose commercials for consumer products feature happy babies in bubble baths. J&J also makes products dear to the hearts of Baby Boomers: Tylenol, Bengay, and Rogaine.

On the ranking of “Reputations of the Most Visible Companies,” Google and J&J share the “top five” designation with Intel, General Mills, and Kraft Foods, all makers of stuff we love.

The bottom five have their work cut out for them. I’m sure they have their brain trusts working night and day to figure out how to save their reputations. Here’s some no-spin advice from a recovering PR flack:

Respect your customers and employees, not just your shareholders.
Improve your products or services.
Offer them at a fair price.
Tell the truth.
Give back.

When you have done the above, then and only then should you tell us how wonderful you are.