I received an email from the pro at the golf club yesterday which was sent to the entire membership. Not that I was planning on it, but he informed us that if we wanted to play golf today we’d have to walk the course since carts would not be available. It seems we’re getting new ones. That’s not a bad thing – some of the old ones had issues and you would occasionally find one stranded on a cart path where it had died mid-round. But it isn’t really a good thing either, since maybe the focus should be on things like getting some sand in the bunkers so they’re playable or even filling the ball washers now that season has officially begun and there is a lot of mud on the course. I know – great having me as a member, right? But it’s good business lesson (which, after all, is what these clubs are!). Continue reading
Category Archives: Reality checks
The Boob Tube
If you’ve spent any time reading this blog you’re probably aware that I have a “thing” for golf. Actually, it’s the same sort of “thing” that assorted rocks stars have for illegal substances – a full-blown addiction. Before you offer, I’m not looking for cures or support groups – thanks for trying to help.
I recently had the experience of having my swing videotaped and analyzed. It was really humbling but it was also a great business lesson. Continue reading
Filed under Consulting, Reality checks
Killer Kat
Have you heard about what’s going on with Nestle and Greenpeace? Interesting article this morning about it and I don’t exactly know where I come out on this. Maybe you can help!
The folks at Greenpeace have targeted Nestle over the company‘s use of palm oil in the Kit Kat bar because of
Nestlé’s purchases of palm-oil from an Indonesian company that Greenpeace International says has cleared rain forest to establish palm plantations.
Nestlé says it had already decided to stop dealing with the firm, which supplied just 1.25% of the palm oil Nestlé used last year. It says it bought only a tiny fraction of the firm’s output, so any impact was negligible, and that it is working toward buying only environmentally sustainable palm oil.
OK, so how much is too much, right? Apparently, the Greenpeace folks think any is too much. But that’s not what intrigues me here. This is:
The difficulty with social media, says Ms. Backes, is “to show that we are listening, which we obviously are, while not getting involved in a shouting match.”
She’s a Nestle spokesperson and she’s reacting to the fact that Nestle’s Facebook and Twitter outposts are being inundated with protesters. The company is trying to respond responsibly via social media but is getting shouted down. Of course, your instinct is to take down the bad comments or prevent additional posts but that changes the nature of the conversation, making it a monologue. On the other hand, if the protesters are totally wrong and are overwhelming Nestle’s ability to correct each incorrect post, what should they do?
I don’t have an answer. It’s easy when it’s a handful of disgruntled consumers but what if it’s thousand of organized protesters who aren’t letting the facts get in the way of their story?
What would you do in Nestle’s shoes?
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Filed under digital media, Reality checks
Consult Keith 