Schmaltz on wry

We’re sorry you didn’t find our photo of a naked, unconscious woman, FUNNY!

There are two parts to this. Part 1, my angry response:

Sad to say that although Mad Mex did take down that photo - of a mostly naked, unconscious woman on an outdoor picnic table, surrounded by empty bottles of alcohol, almost certainly photographed without her consent - they then provided an apology. The classic Aussie footballer’s apology - “I’m sorry that people were offended by my actions”.

You know, the apology that expresses disappointment that other people don’t have a sense of humour. That other people are such prudes. That other people complained. That other people made them apologise. Because really, it was so funny to use that photo of a naked unconscious woman, to sell burritos! We’re sorry you were offended, though. Because, since you were offended, we had to take it down. You ruined our fun. You don’t have a sense of humour. You’re too sensitive. And because of you, normal people are now sad and deprived of their truly amusing comedy. Because of feminism, people don’t get to have fun any more. And THAT’S what makes us sorry.

Apologies for any offence caused, Naomi. The pic was meant in good humour, however we realise that not everyone found it funny.

What doesn’t make us sorry? Using naked women to sell burritos. Assuming that selling ‘dude food’ is also a licence to use sexist, misogynist imagery. Assuming that when the target is drunk, obtaining consent - to take a photograph, in this case - is no longer relevant. Why would we be sorry about all this? It was FUNNY!

Play along with this handy sexist joke bingo card from hoydenabouttown: 

Oh, and I only got that apology after pointing out that although the image had come down, they hadn’t responded to me at all.

Part 2, my advisory approach. Coming up next.

What Mad Mex could have done differently

I work in the online/social media industry, and advise our clients on how to use this sort of technology well. So, what would I have advised Mad Mex to do? (Besides not post that in the first place?)

1. Acknowledge when something goes wrong. It’s one thing to remove offensive content, it’s another to take responsibility for what went wrong. They should have posted a follow-up post on Facebook and explain why that content was posted, and what they’re doing to make sure it won’t happen again.
2. Engage and discuss. I had started a conversation with them by commenting on Facebook and Twitter. They should have responded without being pushed by me to do so.They should have reached out to me immediately - on Twitter, in public - to assuage my concerns, and bring me back into the fold. 
3. Convert the negative to a positive. A great social media story is one where a concerned customer becomes a passionate advocate. An embarrassing, bad-smell kind of social media story is one where a concerned customer is brushed off and becomes even angrier. They should have chatted with me for a few minutes to understand my concerns, and convince me that they had taken my feedback on board.
4. Make sure it doesn’t happen again. Clear social media guidelines and good training would have stopped this happening. This wasn’t a slight discrepancy - this was a photo of a naked unconscious woman being used to sell food. This should never have gotten past their internal controls - and if they don’t have these internal controls in place already, they should get them sorted.

And then there’s number 5: If they really think nothing was wrong with their image - they should do some studying of previous social media bellyflops that did other brands no favours. I’m thinking of Toyota’s sexist Yaris ad campaign, in particular.

It’s not rocket science - it’s just simple social media engagement. Come on Mad Mex, you know how to do it right - don’t let cheap sexist jokes get in the way of what has been a great brand.