A few days ago the owner of one of the most important supermarket chains in Argentina said, in an event in front of cameras and via streaming: “With inflation, we mark prices every day”.
This message ran through social networks and sparked debate. PR professionals know that what he said is the example of everything not to do as a business leader.
The unhappy phrase came to answer a simple question in a country where the economic situation is increasingly complex “What do you do with inflation?” And laughing, he pronounced the phrase that sparked the controversy, negatively impacting the image of his company and his own.
Although what he said may not be surprising, what was surprising was his carefree tone, totally distant and lacking in empathy with the consequences generated by the current economic situation in Argentine citizens and, even worse, without any record of the framework in which he said it. he was saying surrounded by cameras and journalists.
Here the question is what happens when a leader speaks and does so without measuring the consequences because a small mistake can destroy the effort of years in building the brand image that ends up collapsing instantly due to an out of place comment.
Many times the CEO is not good at public speaking, but this does not mean that he is a bad leader, he is simply not prepared to be a spokesperson. But if he has already made the mistake, the key will be to measure the magnitude of it and act accordingly.
It is inevitable to encounter errors, from time to time, as the phrase “we are human” says and, as such, we are fallible and unpredictable. That is why an essential task of public relations is knowing how to anticipate because these errors like these are maintained over time, since generally these types of statements are raised by the media, viralized on social networks and, in addition, what we already know: a “blunder” will always have more echo than a success.
That is why working on the development of a personal brand as the footprint that we are going to leave is key in building leadership. Unlike the corporate brand, the personal brand is what distinguishes you from everyone else. It is made up of your expertise, personality, reputation and history and developing it in an integral way is what will allow pave the way that leads to the construction of a positive impact both inside and outside the organization.
Post-pandemic, the importance of valuing the human part and the ability to communicate more than ever has become clear, since it is what connects us with people and, therefore, it should be a skills outstanding of all managers. The problem arises when leaders see communication as an instrument to reach certain objectives and not as a fundamental element that impacts not only their personal brand image but also the corporate one.