Question

One of the classic debates in the popular press is whether all buzz or word of mouth—positive and negative—is good for a brand. Some feel that “any press is good press” and that as long as people are talking, that is a good thing. Others challenge that notion and say the content of the dialogue is what really matters. Take a position: ”All news is good news” and any buzz is helpful for a brand versus The content of buzz can make or break a brand.

Answer 1

Many people believe in the age old adage " any publicity is good publicity". Public relations teams of companies and artistes go into an overdrive ensuring that the brand or the artiste always stays in news and is relevant to the audience. However, I would strongly disagree that " all news is good news". Perceptions of the public are formed based on the content of the news and this definitely affects the brands. For example, if a cola company is found to have insecticides in its bottles and this appears in the news, this would greatly shake the confidence of the public in the product. One might argue that public has a short term memory. However, this is true in the case of good news as well. Besides, some incidents are hard to erase from the memory of the public. Thus, it would be absolutely right to say that the content of buzz can make or break a brand.