MCDONALD'S TWITTER CAMPAIGN AND H&M'S POTENTIAL COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT
1. Introduction:
Rhetoric strategies have evolved and so have rhetorical strategies over the digital media. This paper focuses on two cases which are the McDonald Case and the H$M case. These two cases are analyzed using the various Rhetorical strategies that are commonly used by authors. This includes the description strategy, compare and contract strategy, division strategy, argumentation, process analysis and the exemplification strategy.
The content in each case provides a basis for this analysis, the first case is the McDonald campaign that backfired, this article narrates how a campaign by this company resulted into negative feedbacks and the company had to replace the original tag. In the second case, H$M clothing company is accused of copying a design from a designer who had created the design in 2008.
Various strategies are used in both cases and this paper aims at discussing these strategies and showing how this strategy aid in persuasion of individuals. The following are some of the strategies that are evident in these cases:
2. Definition:
Garrett, (2010) states that rhetoric analysis is an analysis of how individuals are likely to influence others using symbols and language, rhetorical strategies on the other hand refers to efforts made by the authors to persuade or inform readers. Description rhetoric strategy refers to the clear description of a thing or person, compare and contract rhetoric strategy refers to the differences and comparison efforts made in writing. Division rhetoric strategy is a strategy that entails dividing an article into categories, argumentation rhetoric strategy on the other hand refers to the use of arguments in a case. Exemplification strategy refers to the use of statistics, quotes or facts in a case. Finally, process analysis strategy refers to the description of how things are done.
3. Rhetorical strategies:
3.1. Exemplification strategy:
This strategy involves providing facts and statistics, some of these statistics are provided to convince the reader on the facts of the case (Scollon, 2001). It also entails providing interview quotation to persuade an audience. In almost all forms of writing, this is used to make articles look reliable and accurate when reporting information pertaining to a certain subject. The strategy is widely used in both cases and the main aim is to convince and bring out the facts in each case.
3.1.1. McDonald case
In the first case which is McDonald's Twitter Campaign 2012, the author uses facts and statistics, this is evident where the author quotes that there were 72,788 mention of the McDonald in that day and that there were 250,000 tweets on McDonald in that day. The use of facts makes the article to be more appealing to readers and therefore they are likely to believe the content of the author.This means that the author uses this strategy to persuade and influences readers. (Nishchint, 2012).
The other way in which this strategy is used is an interview quotation; the author quotes the words of the Rick Wion who is the social media director at McDonald. This strategy is used twice in the article where the author quotes the words of Rick Wion and where he quotes the press release. The use of quotes means that these individuals actually made the claims and reference can be made.(Nishchint, 2012).
3.1.2. H$M case
In the other second case entitled H&M's potential copyright infringement, this strategy is also used and this is evident from using quotes from parties involved, the author quotes Tori LaConsay and also letters from H$M company. The article also provides facts about the case, Tori LaConsay states that in 2008 he created a poster for his neighbor. The author provides facts by stating that in the last few days he saw the same poster being used by H$M. The use of facts is also evident in the article where the author quotes that H$M employs over 100 designers. (Killer, H. 2012)
3.2. Description strategy:
This strategy involves a detailed perception description of an individual, something or a thing. Detailed descriptions are made at creating a sensory detail about the subject. In both cases, there are clear descriptions of situations with the H$M case description made more clear with the use of images of the poster and the image of pillows and doormats from the H$M company. In these two cases, this strategy has been extensively used in a way that shapes the perception about the companies involved. (Day, 2008).
3.2.1. McDonald case
In the McDonald case, the use of this strategy is evident where the author provides a detailed account of the backfired plan. The author states that the company was forced to replace the first hash tag with the tag “MeetTheFarmers” and the author uses this description as a way to show how McDonald tried to stop negative views. The release statement included in the article also aids the description of this case. An image is also included to show the subject of the discussion. (Nishchint, 2012).
3.2.2. H$M case
In the H&M case, the author also uses the description strategy, he clearly describes the response of the company and shows that the company has committed copyright infringement; this is achieved by a clear description of how the Tori LaConsay made the sign back in the year 2008. in this description the author provides details on how the original owner of the design made the design and for what purpose, the design image by Tori LaConsay and the recent design by H$M is also included in the article clearly describing the problem. The author also clearly describes how the company hired a designer who copied this design and that H$M was defending its innocence by claiming that it had hired 100 designers to come up with the design. (Killer, H. 2012)
3.3. Narration strategy:
Narration is also another strategy that is commonly used; it involves providing an account on the sequence of events. In this strategy, the author tells a story to the reader and this has been achieved in both cases being analyzed. The McDonald case narrates how the campaign started, how the campaign backfired and how McDonald reacted to the negative response. In the second case, the author narrates how the design was first made and finally how it has affected the original owner of the design. (Wong, 2011)
3.3.1. McDonald case
In the McDonald case, the author narrates how McDonald started an online campaign on twitter. The original hash tag was McDstories. Online users provided negative stories on this tag and this made the company to change the tag to MeetTheFarmers. This was followed by a release statement from McDonald on what had happened. This cleary shows that the author used narration sa rhetoric strategy to discuss the issues relating to this case. (Nishchint, 2012).
3.3.2. H$M case
In the second case, the author starts by narrating how Tori LaConsay created his poster for his neighbors to see on their way to work and on their back home. The story proceeds and shows how he was informed by friends that his design had been copied. The author also provides a second narration about H$M, in this narrative, H$M claims to have hired designers, one of the designs provided was chosen and they started using it on pillows and doormats. (Killer, H. 2012)
The narrative provided also show how Tori LaConsay contacted H$M and the response received from the company. This strategy is therefore used in these cases and this shows how these two cases are likely to influence the perception toward the two companies. (Killer, H. 2012)
3.4. Compare and contract strategy:
This is another strategy used by authors; this strategy involves providing the similarities and differences of a thing, individual or company. Comparing means showing the similarities of two different things. On the other hand, contrast refers to the efforts made by the author to bring out the differences between two things in the case. In both cases, this strategy in used although much evident in the H$M case where visual images are used to chow similarities and differences. (Brooke, 2008)
3.4.1. H$M case
In the H$M case, the author provides two images. one image shows the original poster by Tori LaConsay back in 2008 and the other image shows the logos on pillows and doormats produced by H$M. the two images shows some similarities although it is clear that the two images are quite similar and H$M has to be held responsible. Differences indicated by the author include the font used and the absence of a heart in the doormat logo. This clearly shows that the author used the compare and contrast strategy to put across his arguments in the case. (Killer, H. 2012)
3.4.2. McDonald case
The Compare and contrast strategy is used in the McDonald case although not extensively. In this case, the author shows the differences in the number of hits and mention of McDonald before and after the removal of the original tag. According to the author, there were over 250,000 hits when the first tag was initiated and after it was replaced. Only a few dozen hits were recorded. This strategy is also evident where the expectations of the company differ with the results of their campaign, the company expected to promote its company through this campaign, unfortunately this was the opposite and something has do be done to stop these negative comments. (Nishchint, 2012).
3.5. Divisions strategy:
This is a strategy that involves dividing an article into parts; it involves separating categories with reference to their relation to one another. The main aim of these categories is to ensure that the reader is able to read and understand the response from different respondents quoted in the cases. This strategy is used in both cases but most notably in the H$M case which has more categories compared to the McDonald case. (Brooke, 2008)
3.5.1. H$M case
In the H$M case, division are used in a way that the author separate the different comments, the first vision is the comment from the original author of the design, the second is the poster and the other divisions are from the comments from the company. The final division of the article is the comment from others users. These divisions enable the reader to differentatiate the various contents of the article and these divisions help in brining out the facts of the case. (Killer, H. 2012)
3.5.2. McDonald case
In the McDonald case, the divisions are well set, the first division is an image that is used by McDonald and then a narration and the response from the company. This strategy is used in both cases to clarify the meaning of the article and to organize facts about each case. (Nishchint, 2012).
3.6. Cause and effect strategy
This strategy entails providing a description on the cause of the problem and the effect of the problem. In this strategy, the author may begin by quoting the problem at hand and then create a narrative of the causes of the problem in the case. In both cases, the authors provides a cause effect explanation of the cases especially the McDonald case, although even in the other case the cause effect strategy is also evident. (Brooke, 2008)
3.6.1. McDonald case
In the McDonald case, the company initiated a campaign to encourage individuals to provide views about their products. The responses from respondents were negative and therefore this led to the replacement of the tag used by the company. Therefore, there is evidence that the cause effect strategy is used where the negative feedback led to the changing of the tag to MEETTHEFARMER. Another cause effect evident is the case where changing the tag resulted into a decline in the number of hits or response. (Nishchint, 2012).
3.6.2. H$M case
In the second case, the cause effect strategy is also evident. The case where the H$M company decides to use the design resulted into response from the original designer, there is also evidence of this strategy where a customer responds to H$M stating that he or she will n0o longer shop at their stores. The Claim that H$M has committed a copyright infringement resulted into the customer writing to the company. This strategy there\fore is therefore extensively used in both cases. (Killer, H. 2012)
3.7. Argumentation strategy:
Argumentation entails convincing others regarding a particular aspect of a thing or person, this strategy entails providing sensible reasoning to persuade the reader to accept a certain point of view due to the issues and facts raised. This strategy has been widely used especially when an article is aimed at persuading others to accept a certain point of view. This strategy is also evident in both cases . (Kreps, 2009).
3.7.1. H$M case
For the H$M case, the argumentation strategy is used where the author includes a photo of the original design and then clearly shows the image of the logo by H$M. this is argumentative in that the article also indicates a letter sent by the original designer and a reply from the company. Arguments are also evident where the author quotes the company stating that it employs over 100 designers and therefore it should not be held accountable. Another argument is that the original designer, Tori LaConsay, states that he made the design and he should be compensated. (Killer, H. 2012)
3.7.2. McDonald case
The Argumentation strategy is evident in the McDonald case where the author provides arguments why the McDonald campaign tag was changed. McDonald also argues that it changed it tag due to the negative comments it received and therefore had to change the tag to MEETTHEFARMER in order to show the viewers that they were using fresh produce to produce their products. (Nishchint, 2012).
3.8. Process analysis strategy:
This is a strategy that is used to show the how a certain process occurs; the main importance of this strategy is that it provides individuals with a procedure on how a process occurs. A good example is an an article that aims to bring out a narrative that show how things are done, in both cases, this strategy is used showing how companies will react to a crisis. The use of this strategy in both cases simply gives instructions on how crises are handled. (Roberts, 2010).
3.8.1. McDonald case
In the McDonald case, it is evident that the writer provides a clear instruction on how a company will avoid negative publicity when things go wrong. The first step is that the company will start a campaign; the company will then monitor the progress of the campaign. The next step will be to decide whether the campaign is appropriate or not, if it is not then a decision to change the original campaign is made and statement released to inform the public on what transpired. (Nishchint, 2012).
In this first case, McDonald started the McDstories, they then monitored the feedbacks and upon realizing that they were negative, they changed the tag to meetthefarmer. The next step was to inform everyone on what had happened and why these steps were taken. The author in this case therefore uses the process analysis strategy. (Nishchint, 2012).
3.8.2. H$M case
In the H$M case, the author uses this strategy by describing how a company will respond to allegations and how they will go about it. Upon realizing that there were negative feedbacks about H$M, the company released a statement that apologizes yet denies their intention of copying the design. The case also provides a way in which to resolve these issues, the first step is to be sure that the copyright infringement has occurred and then informs them, if responses are not satisfactory, then the social media is the best next step. As shown in the article, the company responded to the social media negative publicity and this may force them to accept responsibility and compensate. (Killer, H. 2012)
4. Conclusion:
The narrative strategy also emerges well in both cases, in the first case, the author narrates how McDonald initiated the campaign and how eventually they were forced to change the tag of their campaign to avoid negative feedbacks. In the second case, the author provides an account of how the first design was made by quoting the original designer’s story. The author provides a chronological report of the events and eventually shows how the H$M company resulted into denying and finally apologizing.
These two examples are just an example of how rhetoric techniques are being used in the social media and the entire World Wide Web. It is evident that these techniques help in persuading individuals to accept a certain point of view and persuade them to take action.
5. References:
Brooke, M. (2008). The rhetoric of technical writing: Applying social and verbal strategies. Arkansas: University of Arkansas
Day, R. (2008). The Modern Invention of Information: Discourse, History, and Power. Illinois: University of Illinois Press
Garrett, M. (2010). Rhetorical Analysis: A Brief Guide for Writers. New York: McGraw Hill Press.
Killer, H. (2012). H&M is Awesome. Accessed on 9th March, available at http://www.regretsy.com/2012/01/24/hm-is-awesome/
Kreps, G. (2009). Applied communication theory and research. New York: Black well press
Nishchint (2012). McDonald’s Twitter Campaign #McDStories Backfires! Accessed on 9th March, available at http://www.nishchint.com/blog/mcdonalds-twitter-campaign-mcdstories-backfires/
Roberts, H. (2010). The Recovery of rhetoric: persuasive discourse and disciplinarity. New York: McGraw Hill Press.
Scollon, K. (2001). Intercultural communication: a discourse approach. New Jersey: Prentice hall
Wong, S. (2011). Intercultural Communication. New York: Wiley and sons
