Last night during the first game of ESPN’s Monday Night Football double header, color analyst Ron “Jaws” Jaworski dropped the “S-bomb” on live TV. For me, it was interesting not for its shock value, but for how quickly his faux pas was deemed newsworthy. After I rewound my DVR quite a few times and finally stopped laughing, I decided to experiment. I typed “Ron Jaworski’s comment on MNF” into Google – there were already three entries about the comment! And this just literally 5 minutes after it had been made.  When using the same search phrase on Google less than 24 hours later,  there were then over 200 related stories - including stories from USA Today, New York Daily News, The Washington Post - just to name a few. I was once told, “You can’t outrun technology.” (sorry I forgot who told me). Nothing today is off limits from technology. If a movie, a TV show, or a song doesn't work; people will know it quickly. This also trickles down into experiences. If a customer has a bad one, you better believe they’ll be telling their friends via Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, emails and texts. They might even blog about it or put up a video. If you’re lucky they may even do it when the experience is good. I find myself constantly cautioning advertisers about claims. If they make claims in their ads they better be able to back them up. Sure there was some shock value to Mr. Jaworski’s comment and that is a lesson in itself for businesses. So think about everything your business name is associated with and how it is presented by you and every employee. Really learn what kind of experience your customers are having. This “Jaws” incident is a good example of how one word can spark conversation. And all it takes is a little “s&%t” to help spread it! So decide what kind of headlines you want - good or bad - and make them happen.

‍Chris Hoffman

Viamark Advertising – Asheville, NC