In a previous article titled “Too Big to Care: Water, Water Everywhere and Not Enough to Steal”, we wrote about the plight of the residents of California, both human and wildlife, becoming increasingly desperate as they endure a long-term drought, this year being their third-driest on record.
We used this real-time scenario as the backdrop to illustrate various examples of the application or misapplication of goodwill as described by L. Ron Hubbard in his article of 7 April 1983, GOODWILL.
In the aforementioned article, we cited several highly-recognized national brands (Aquafina, Dasani, Arrowhead and Crystal Geyser) which still continue to bottle and sell off the critically short amount of remaining natural fresh water resources in California, much to the dismay of its residents and environmentally-conscious individuals across the country.
Goodwill Done Right
We also highlighted the case of another very popular company, Starbucks, showing community goodwill and social responsibility. Facing the same circumstances as do the companies above, Starbucks took the approach of providing goodwill towards the state and announced plans to move the water sourcing and bottling production of their Ethos Water to its Pennsylvania supplier, as well as plans to further explore alternatives to transition to a new source and supplier to serve the company’s West Coast distribution.
Starbucks artfully turned a bad situation, for them as well as California, to their advantage by volunteering to do the right thing, i.e., apply GOODWILL and help the state maintain its natural resources.
How Showing Goodwill Works
Starbucks’ handling is a laudable example of using the datum, “Goodwill is the reputation an organization has with its publics for integrity, good service, prompt bills paying, high quality delivery, friendliness, etc.,” as written by Mr. Hubbard.
This example should by no means be interpreted as having to wait for a terrible circumstance to occur before showing goodwill. In fact, Mr. Hubbard says, “It is not only the job of the Public Relations Officer to secure goodwill. It is part of every staff member’s job to help build goodwill for the organization by doing those things that will cause the public to think well of it, and by refraining from doing those things that would result in bad PR for the organization.”
This statement opens the door for any company to proactively demonstrate GOODWILL at all times towards its existing clients, as well as to potential future clients and to the public in general.
As the U.S. is a consumer-based society with literally millions of businesses competing to sell their services and products, consumers are in the driver’s seat when it comes to choosing where to spend their money. With such abundance of choice, people have to come to expect a certain standard of treatment and quality when deciding from whom and where to buy their goods and services.
This means that not only do you have to produce a high-quality product or service, but you have to provide it in a manner that is socially acceptable; your employees cannot be rude and, in fact, they should be obviously friendly, and your place of business should be clean and pleasant. Again, a Starbucks outlet comes to mind when thinking of this ideal setting and operating basis.
PR Precedes Marketing
However, there are many more ways for you to show GOODWILL towards your public and the community beyond what people see and hear when they interact with your company as clients.
And if you have any doubts at this point about the benefits of goodwill, and you think you might just continue with your marketing efforts without considering PR actions, L. Ron Hubbard states in an article of 12 September 1988, POSITIONING IN PR, “THE GENERAL RULE IS: PUBLICITY FIRST, ADVERTISING SECOND. (PR PLANTS THE SEED. ADVERTISING HARVESTS THE CROP.)”
As part of your PR efforts, your businesses should reach out to the community for a variety of reasons, including that doing so will increase awareness of your company that often leads to increased sales.
Mr. Hubbard also says, “The amount of public demand for service and your future income are both largely dependent upon GOODWILL.”
What to Do
You can demonstrate GOODWILL by supporting local groups that align with your interests or purpose. Helping anti-drugs groups, children’s organizations, schools, disaster victims or any other worthy group will go a long way in showing GOODWILL.
But you need to know that community engagement is all about understanding your audience, how they perceive you, what the barriers are to reaching them, what they read and watch, where they go, what they’re interested in, and what motivates them. So do your research before jumping into any cause.
In-House Solutions
Some in-house solutions could include:
- Design and deliver public lectures about something in which you are expert; do this live and online;
- Participate in local Fun-Runs with employees, or create your own, to support a cause you can get behind;
- Reach out to people through community hubs such as schools, hospitals, faith centers and childcare centers;
- Write and distribute newsletters, letters, leaflets and other materials that keep people updated on relevant matters;
- Build positive relationships with local print, radio, TV and online media—send them newsworthy information about your corporate social involvement; and
- Use social media to promote your good works; get involved in conversations and encourage discussion
Outsource Solutions
Of course, if you can afford to hire a professional PR agency that is well-versed in L. Ron Hubbard PR Tech, they can help you set up a complete PR campaign to enhance your marketing efforts.
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