Mumbai: Yes Madam, a Noida-based home salon service platform, ran into hot water after a post on LinkedIn went viral. The post said that it had terminated 100 employees who had complained about workplace stress after it conducted a survey to which the employees had responded. This led to backlash from people saying that the company’s move was wrong.
The company was forced to clarify that this was a social media campaign designed to bring attention to the serious issue of mental health and stress at work. However, there are still those online who posted comments suggesting that the campaign was actually a cover-up and that the company would have fired people had it not been for the protests online.
The Bhasin Consulting Group founder, Ashish Bhasin, speaking to Medianews4u.com, said that the whole exercise was in poor taste. It also presents an image problem for the company when it comes to investors and employees. He noted that in a country like India, there are some things that you have to be sensitive towards, and clearly, job losses are one of those things. “You have to be very sensitive because people’s lives and careers are at stake. So, humour is good, and being a little sensational can be used, but it should not be in bad taste.”
“What they did crossed the line a bit. Sometimes, in the endeavour to be more noticed, you end up being extra smart, and that actually boomerangs on you. That is what this appears to be a case of. Whatever it was, I would say that it was in poor taste.”
He added that the situation puts the company in a bad light and that the company needs to repair its image. The best way is to be honest and admit that a mistake was made. “Honesty and clear communication always pay well. The company should take some corrective action. They need to clarify what the intention is. The way their clarification has been put out, nobody knows what the real intent is. They should admit a mistake was made. That would be the most productive approach. Just giving that clarification, I don’t think, is sufficient. Companies just need to be sensitive in a market like India and not treat frivolously some issues that are serious.”
He said that a clarification should admit that a mistake was made and then the process of repair starts. “If you don’t do that and try to be oversmart, then it will not cut ice with too many people. You then dig the hole deeper and deeper. Sometimes, a young copywriter gets carried away and puts in things that have unintended consequences. This does happen in the ad industry. People are more forgiving if you say you made a mistake. The whole tonality is an issue too. An employee in that company would be very confused, insecure, and they would think twice if they want to build a career there or not. If this was meant to be shock marketing, then it was a very poor example of shock marketing, and the biggest shock will be in store for the company. And it wasn’t even a good piece of marketing. It doesn’t tick any of the boxes.”
Mistakes, he said, do happen on the communication front, and the best way forward is to be honest. They should admit that they got the tonality and messaging wrong. And if the post was genuine from an employee and the clarification was a cover-up, then the company should be honest about that as well. This would have put them in a much better light. He noted that one issue is that senior people in startups don’t take communication very seriously.
They don’t vet such communication. The CEO’s neck should be on the block for something like this, Bhasin opines, as it is not just a communication issue. This is an image issue. VCs who invest get impacted, and they should be worried if a loose cannon is around in a company. “Generally, you have to handle communication with a lot of sensitivity. Moreover, people have forgotten about the intent of the post.”
Magicpin, for its part, said that it would offer jobs. Bhasin, though, said that this sounded like an opportunistic move, but if the move was genuine, it should be appreciated.
Monish Sanghavi, Business Head of Liqvd Asia, said that creative ideas cannot lack empathy.
“Executing bold ideas is not the problem, but the idea in execution definitely is.
“The idea cannot lack empathy or be so insensitive to the prevalent topic, especially when the majority of the audience is the working class.”
“What emotion were they trying to evoke, anyway?”
“If the campaign was meant to raise awareness about workplace stress, it clearly missed the mark—and by miles.”
“First, it did not focus on the challenge but rather on the company’s actions (everyone can read between the lines). Second, when you’re trying to create awareness about workplace stress and empathy for your team regarding a serious issue, the shock-and-awe gimmick failed miserably. While YesMadam intended to bring inclusivity to the issue, it ended up excluding everyone.”
Ajay Verma, Managing Partner at 0101.Today, said that frankly, both the news of the post and the company’s clarification that it was a marketing activity on its part were disturbing. “The jury is not out if it was a gimmick or a smart cover-up. If we look at it objectively, the Google data shows a big spike from Dec 9th till date. This news/ad gimmick has certainly delivered on improving company awareness – for the believers of ‘any publicity is good publicity,’ it can be termed as good from an investment to conversations perspective, but I personally think it’s more of a damage than a smart move.”
He added that like in most cases, the distinction between good and bad is blurring. “And I may be old school here. Where brands certainly need to be known, but being known for negative associations is not a great idea. I think the Indian startup ecosystem is making fantastic progress and has been appreciated the world over – and it’s beyond these gimmicks or wrongdoings.”
He added that if it was a planned shock marketing strategy, then it is a bold one. “Frankly, I must admit that it is difficult to garner eyeballs in today’s very cluttered, noisy environment. In social conversations, respected corporates have good internal governance systems, which have been working well. And frankly, I don’t know who is capable of creating these guidelines, implementing them, and ensuring they are enforced. These should be more self-directed than directed.”
He also doesn’t think that the company’s brand ambassador will face negative backlash. “I don’t think so, or I hope not. The public memory is weak, short, and forgiving. Like they say, this too will pass.”
When asked about delivery app Magicpin saying that it would offer jobs to those fired, he said that this was a smart move. “At least someone is thinking! They will be remembered for their positive response in this negative wave.”
