Helena Uhl
With a single video, Dolce & Gabbana (D&G) managed to alienate not only a whole country but also one of its largest consumer bases.
In 2018, the Italian fashion company released a tone-deaf ad for their fashion show depicting a Chinese model trying to eat Italian dishes, such as pizza and Cannoli, using chopsticks.
The video ignited a social media storm. Users voiced their outrage about the complete lack of cultural sensitivity under the #BoycottDolce. D&G responded by taking down the video on Chinese social media but offered no statement on the matter.
Adding fuel to the fire
What followed was a series of missteps that damaged D&G’s reputation and should serve as a ‘what not to do’ lesson for any PR professional.
Soon after the video, what appeared to be leaked instagram messages written by Stefano Gabbana about the incident were released online. Although he claimed that he had been hacked, the damage was done.
Many famous people, including D&G’s own brand ambassador, stepped up to criticize the brand and called on international companies to respect China’s culture. D&G was also boycotted by many online retailers.
Perhaps at this stage, a well thought out crisis response could have calmed furious customers. But guess what D&G didn’t do?
No apologies
After waiting several days, D&G cancelled its fashion show and released a statement that described the events as “unfortunate” but made no mention of an apology.
This was a critical miscalculation on their part. Researchers McDonald, Sparks and Glendon found that confession is the best response to a crisis, in particular when a company is at fault. It reduces people’s anger and their angry word of mouth, while increasing sympathy and loyalty.
With an apology, they also could have made an impression on the media. Schafraad, van Zoonen and Verhoeven found that press releases are important for getting media attention, particularly those discussing a controversy, elite organizations and those containing incentives, such as CEO quotes. They had the means to reach the media and could have used this opportunity to reframe the conversation, but they didn’t take it.
Too little…
Eventually the co-founders of D&G did release a video apology on social media. Considering the extent of the outrage, this was the opportunity for a big gesture. Again D&G didn’t take it. Both men sit in front of the camera reading what seems like a prepared teleprompter script with little to no emotional sincerity.
That spokespersons need to show genuine concern is accepted as a best practice in PR. Veil, Buehner and Palenchar confirm this and argue that communicating compassion and empathy is the only way to humanize crisis response.
The fact that both co-founders showed a clear lack of empathy in their apology was the perfect way to ensure that it fell on deaf ears and did little to restore D&G’s reputation.
…Too late
It took five full days for the company’s co-founders to make a formal apology. This was a crucial mistake as the company didn’t get ahead of media criticism.
Following the outrage on social media, D&G should have immediately responded to the crisis before the media got a hold of the story.
Claeys, Cauberghe, and Pandelaere found that when companies immediately break the news of their mistake, people and the media pay less attention to it and see the company in a more positive light.
A history of insensitivity
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| D&G campaign/D&G |
Coombs’s Situational Crisis Communication Theory argues that when a company has a history of similar crisis, people are more likely to blame the company for its mistakes and therefore its reputation suffers even more.
A possible solution for future crisis can be explained using Structuration Theory: the idea that if people repeat an action often enough, it becomes part of social reality. But a group of people can also change this structure, if they make an active attempt.
By constantly sending out controversial messages, D&G has created an established pattern of this behavior. If D&G were to make promoting social awareness a priority, it could go a long way to improving its image.
There’s no debating that D&G is paying a heavy price for its bad crisis response. It is a lesson to anyone working in PR that a timely and sincere reaction is key.
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