Good PR of the week

Ice-cream steal

Reacting to a customer suggestion that tubs should come with padlocks to prevent others from stealing your ice cream, Ben & Jerry’s has invented a ‘Euphori-Lock’.

The combination lock, which will set you back $6.64, fits onto the top of Ben & Jerry’s tubs. It comes with the message: ‘”I’m terribly sorry but there is no ‘u‘ in ‘my pint’”.
                                                                                          
This stunt works because it is essentially suggesting that the ice cream is so good that others would want to take it from you, even if you have never had the thought yourself, like some sort of self-fulfilling prophecy.

Number alert

Missing People, “a lifeline when someone disappears” launched its new European phone number, 116000, in Britain and 15 other countries for International Missing Children’s Day. To do so, the following video was released and launched in cinemas.

All seems relatively standard, until, the video, perhaps controversially given the fact it’d be in a cinema, asks you to phone a number to hear a conversation had between the character and a Missing People representative.

It’s a brilliantly innovative way to broach a serious subject. Seriously, you should watch it.

Hulking apology

Also, a quick one, there was this, dubbed the “best corporate apology ever posted to Twitter” by Adweek:

Given that the Ultimate Warrior was my favourite wrestler, I have mixed feelings, but admittedly, this is a funny way to respond.

Thanks to Thomas Knorrp – funnily enough, from Sainsbury’s digital PR team – and Carrot Communications’ Gemma Story for Tweeting with this.

Bad PR of the week

American nightmare

When you’re campaigning to become the proclaimed “leader of the free world“, having been confirmed as the Republican candidate for the US presidency, typographical errors aren’t just annoying; they’re an early indication that your team is less than thorough.

Admittedly, Mitt Romney is following in the footsteps of fellow-Republican and all-round gaffe-prone bumbler George W Bush Jr and as such too much shouldn’t be expected of him, but to release an app and incorrectly spell the name of the country you hope to be president of isn’t a great start.

Thanks to Kaper London’s James Bunting for getting in touch with this one.

Aurasma versus Charles Arthur

Aurasma is an app that ‘”brings the physical and virtual worlds together for the first time“.

When Charles Arthur – Guardian tech journalist and the inspiration behind my piss-take awards, The CRAPPs, for his widely known dislike of ill-targeted PR – Tweeted:

“saw Aurasma aug reality app at CES this year. Has anyone a) downloaded it b) ever seen content tagged for it?”

He had a limited number of responses, including from Business Matters’ Richard Alvin, who wasn’t very complimentary about the app. Then, spotting an opportunity (three days later), Aurasma asked its 3,000+ followers to assemble and Tweet him with their experiences.

At first, Arthur was polite: “Please DON’T ask people to Tweet at me because I will block them. I’ll invite people I want, not you, thanks.”

Presumably after a number of Tweets, he then Tweeted with: “If anyone Tweets me their @aurasma experience as a result of that idiot in charge of it asking them, I will block you”.

Finally, finishing with the somewhat less than polite:

“STOP DOING THIS YOU CLUELESS IDIOT”.

So, instead of popping Arthur a quick introductory email saying, “hey, if you need any info, we’re here“, which would have been both targeted and polite, Aurasma has wound up somebody it really should be trying to get into bed with, with him calling its efforts “indicative of not understanding how this medium works”.

Thanks to EML Wildfire’s Darren Willsher for Tweeting with this!

Have you seen any good or bad PR?

Contact PR Rich Leigh with it by Tweeting him @GoodandBadPR or by emailing rich@10yetis.co.uk throughout the week and we’ll happily credit you for your trouble.

Good and Bad PR is a feature on the blog of 10 Yetis PR Agency.