Reflection on Wal-mart Advertising Campaign
Wal-mart is a large multinational corporation that places a lot of emphasis on public opinion and satisfaction of its customers not only with the price and the product but also with its internal and external responsibility strategy. It is possible to argue that focus customer of Wal-mart is also a potential and current employee and, thus, understanding, preference and acceptance of this stakeholder builds on success of the company in general. Threats and accusations of governmental and media professionals are not new for the company as the scale and scope of its operations inevitably “create supporters and enemies” (Walmart, 2013). The latest advertisement campaign, therefore, is the attempt to address its stakeholders not by responding to the accusations of the external parties, but by calling their attention to create own opinion from inside as well as outside the company.
Going back to the nature of the relationships that Wal-mart has with its customers it is possible to conclude that the choice of the advertisement distribution channel is determined by the impact that it has on the final consumer. The letter of the CEO is very explicit and the image of the typical employee will create stronger emotional response. Putting this advertisement on TV, even though reaching out to more customers would create controversial response and allow for further going judgments, based misunderstanding. Newspaper, on the other hand is the source that allows people to stop and think, analyze the advertisement visually and come back to the core of the discussion with clear evidence.
References
Lussier R. (2008). Management Fundamentals: Concepts, Applications, Skill Development. Mason: cengage learning. Print.
Walmart (2013). ‘2013 Global Responsibility Report’. Walmart Official Web site. Retrieved 13 January 2014, http://corporate.walmart.com/microsites/global-responsibility-report-2013/
