Authenticity Is Valuable
from the tell-us-what-you-really-think dept
The New York Times has a write up about Check Out, the new Wal-Mart blog that has been making waves with its blunt style. The blog's authors are purchasing agents for the giant retailer, and they aren't pulling their punches. "My life has not changed dramatically," one Wal-Mart employee wrote about Vista, "well, for that matter, it hasn’t changed at all." It's a fascinating move on Wal-Mart's part, and it may pay off for them. Wal-Mart has done a great deal of good for the American economy -- especially low-income individuals, by improving the efficiency of the retail sector and thereby reducing the price consumers pay for almost everything. But because they've been so narrowly focused on improving the efficiency of their operations, they haven't done a very good job with PR. They're widely seen as monolithic, heartless, and and impersonal.The new blog seems likely to pay off for the retailer in several ways. First, by making it clear that contributors are expressing their personal opinions, it gives Wal-Mart a platform to call out manufacturers who produce bad products while maintaining some distance between the blog and Wal-Mart's official perspective. Second, by allowing comments, it allows consumers to communicate back to Wal-Mart, helping the retailer's purchasers keep tabs on consumers' complaints about its products. Finally, and most importantly, it may help to personalize the store and give it a reputation for candor and openness it currently lacks. This will pay off, for example, next time Wal-Mart faces a PR challenge; a widely-read blog can give the store a way to get its side of the story in a way that's more personal and credible than a press release. The risk, obviously, is that a blogger might say something that causes flack for the company as a whole. Presumably they were careful to choose bloggers who won't say anything too intemperate. But Wal-Mart is probably in a pretty good position on this front. It's so huge that it doesn't have to worry too much about alienating its suppliers; they're going to be eager to get their products onto Wal-Mart's shelves no matter how much they might dislike what Wal-Mart says on its blog. So it can afford to be more candid than a smaller chain that might have to worry about jeopardizing its relationships with key suppliers.
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Filed Under: authenticity, blogging
Companies: wal-mart
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University of Arkansas alert!
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But yes, it does present some PR challenges if the supplier is not equipped to handle the feedback in an effective manner. Remember DirectBuy?
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Huh? In tons of areas, they sold at a loss in order to run out the competition, and then raised thier prices. Those people lost their businesses and thier jobs, and local economies lost competition for pricing, and this is good how? There are still places in the US where locals have voted no to letting Wal-Mart build, just for that reason.
And I still get clothes cheaper at the mall. Yes, I do mean cheaper than that Garanimals crap they sell.
Wow. This author must live in a cave somewhere.
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Re:
It's when they become the _only_ reasonably close store for certain things that they become a problem.
Don't even get me started on how bad they treat their workers. Fortunately I don't know first hand, but the sheer volume of complaints in that regard make it obvious they are much worse than most companies.
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Re:
Got any evidence for this? I'll admit we don't get a lot of information here in our cave, but this isn't what I've read.
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A PR problem, or a business problem?
I'm all for increasing efficiency, but when they purposely act the way they have (keep people below certain hours/earnings so they don't have to pay benefits, the practices listed above), that isn't efficiency. It is screwing people for profit.
So they let some employees criticize suppliers? And? Let's see if they let employees criticize Wal-Mart. Then I might be impressed. Until then, this is just smoke up the rear pipe.
BTW, Wal-Mart has a knack for royally screwing their suppliers, too. Pot, meet kettle.
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mmm lead paint
Aside from several workers who go to internet cafes, I'm sure the rest of the Chinese workers are paid to poorly to afford a computer, or enough food to feed their families.
"But because they've been so narrowly focused on improving the efficiency of their operations, they haven't done a very good job with PR. They're widely seen as monolithic, heartless, and and impersonal."
What efficiency? Using more efficient ways of hiding chunks of lead in child and infant toys, the total destruction of many town's economies, extreme opposition of any form of unionization, god forbid workers want fair conditions, or the part where they basically hold distributors at a gunpoint in order to get lower wholesale prices. And why can they get away with this? Because they're WalMart. Sam Walton is turning in his grave.
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Re: mmm lead paint
Really? They threaten to shoot their distributors? Or is this just your way of saying they're tough negotiators?
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I've worked for both J.C. Penney and Sears and...
Did you know that 70% of thier employees leave within the first year? Doesn't sound like they add good decent paying jobs to the economy, now does it?
Pete, please give me the ratio of jobs lost because of Wal-Mart's well documented loss-leadership technique (not new, just vicious) versus the jobs you say were 'created' by Wal-Mart entering your local market in the same niche as the businesses that it pushed out. I would also like to see some evidence backing up your pay rate claim. I'd be alright with anecdotal evidence, as you probably could not get any of the companies that you mentioned to give you that information.
Please see my next post for substantiation of my loss-leader claim.
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Re: I've worked for both J.C. Penney and Sears and
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Loss-Leader Substantiation - An Eye Opener
In Germany, they were quite blatantly engaging in a pricing war with two older and well-established chains. See a PDF report here (http://www.wilmerhale.com/files/Publication/d3382527-7acd-45c6-bae6-4ef14157e415/Presentation/Publi cationAttachment/007af760-21b4-46b0-b356-a96612caf3cf/International%20Competition%20Law%20Update12-2 -02.pdf).
The next articles talks a bit about how Wal-Mart will use a loss leader technique to get more people into their stores by offering 150 different popular prescriptions for below cost... namely, for four dollars a month. Most of you have heard of that, with the notable exception of those cave guys. http://www.nypost.com/seven/09242006/business/wal_mart_hopes_cheap_rx_plan_will_perk_up_image_busine ss_terry_keenan.htm
This next link is to a site that explains that Wal-Mart employees make less than employees that thier competitors (See, Pete?) and includes quotes from Wal-Mart that acknowlege that and 'explain' why. It also talks about the number of times that Wal-Mart has been sued for violations of labor laws, and how much they have had to pay out in settlements and judgements against them. http://www.wakeupwalmart.com/facts/
I guess I could go on and talk about the studies that have been done on everything from thier treatment of employees, their blatant disregard for the laws of the US, Germany, and other countries to thier negative environmental impact compared to that of thier competitors... But I won't because I'm just a whack-job that has a vendetta against Wal-Mart and loves to make claims that I cannot substantiate, like Pete did.
The sad thing is that I still shop at Wal-Mart. They've driven out most of the competition in alot of areas. Not all and I still shop elsewhere when it's relatively convenient, but at least I'm honest about where I'm shopping and what I'm funding. Some of you people are just too self-satisfied to look beyond your jaded aspects and see what we've allowed to grow in our country. Bet y'all like RealID, also.
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Re: Loss-Leader Substantiation - An Eye Opener
And yes, I'm in favor of Real ID. That's why I wrote a post criticizing it yesterday.
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Walmart drives away the competition? Hmmm....
5 years later and this is what's left since the Walmart didn't get built:
-Over $25 million dollars is being spent on "re-vitalizing" an area due to lack of customers.
-5 major anchor stores (big name stores that are used to drive in customers) closed.
-12 restaurants closed their doors, never to re-open.
-Traffic still increased because two new suburbs were built and the main road connects them.
Two years ago, a Super Walmart was built on a major highway. Traffic on this highway was already getting bad, but the town decided to use the Walmart to its advantage. Now, there are 20+ stores, 5+ gas stations, and so many restaurants to eat at.
For these nay-sayers, I say eat crow. Tim's assessment that Walmart helps the economy is correct.
While many of you rant and cry about how Walmart doesn't treat its employees fairly, the fact that OTHER places around the Walmart does gives people options. But let's focus on what "fairly" means.
When an employer tells its employees they must cover 60% of their insurance payments because of the rising cost of healthcare, is that fair?
When an employer uses outdated standard costs of living to offer a salary to an employee, is that fair?
Most employers offer a 3% salary increase while ignoring the fact that the inflationary costs exceed this, is that fair?
The post from Anonymous Coward who stated no experience first hand can definitely tell of stories at his employer. In fact, all of you can. It happens everywhere.
I'm not defending Walmart's practices. I'm targeting the hypocrisy from the posts of this thread who think Walmart is the bad guy here when, in fact, it's ALL of Corporate America.
This country no longer lives in the world of capitalism. It's all about greed. Patent lawsuits, cheaper products but higher costs, price fixing, cheaper labor hiring, and many other things shows that "capitalism" isn't working anymore.
Respond negatively to this post all you want, but the facts lie before you.
Mom & Pop stores aren't being driven out by Walmart. These little stores can't offer what Walmart can, often are priced higher, and are stuck in the middle of nowhere for access.
In today's world, faster and convenient is what people want.
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They're widely seen as monolithic, heartless, and
Let's not forget petty and vindictive. I remember a story my aunt told me about her telecom company selling prepaid phone cards at wally world. They did it for a year, didn't see a significant return, and decided when contract negotiations came up a month before the contract was to close or be renewed not to continue the deal.
The next day wal mart removed every single card from their shelves, enuring that they'd have plenty of stock to send back to her company so they could maximize what they could charge for unsold stock. The constant squeezing of suppliers for ever cheaper goods doesn't help either. It's nice to see them listening to people a little, but I don't think this will do much to change their image if their actions don't change first.
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Didn't say that...
So why don't you give us a few examples of corporatations that eliminate competition and are horrible, since Wal-Mart is among dozens. Just give me three, Twinrova. That's all I ask. It should be easy, since all of corporate America is engaged in the same business practices. Right..?
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As far as "wakeupwalmart.com" I feel that anything they print needs to be verified as there seems to be a very strong emotional anti-walmart feel to the site but don't get me wrong, I realize walmart is just a corporation that is there to make max profit, just like any corporation and they have done things wrong and illegal just like other corporations (microsoft, Exxon, Ford and so forth).
Darn I need to get off this soapbox, sorry folks.
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I Worked for them
I couldn't have supported myself in an apartment on that job, but I made more at that job with my poor experience level than I had for options in my other areas.
The management favored promotions from within and honest criticism from its' employees.
The benefits package wasn't much worth it and I was leveled by how hard they tried to prevent unions from showing up, but it was a great stepping stone job all in all.
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Tifanie Van Larr
with a married man. She just had his baby.
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Concerning wages, why don't you compare their wages with an actual competing retailer? Or how about their benefits?
What will you do when Target is the same size as Walmart?
For the person commenting on WMT's use of Chinese labor: listen, no one's saying Chinese laborers make great money...by America's standards! But are you willing to pay $40 for a t-shirt? Of course not, that's why your cousin (or whoever) can't work at an apparel manufacturer in America (no such thing). Americans won't work for reasonable wages, Unions would simply drive operational efficiency down and wages up anyway.
Unions believe company's exist to give people jobs...if you agree...please reassess.
Lots of rambling in this because I don't care to proofread. In closing, please remember how this country started. And please remember that nothing good comes from something free. If you ever have thoughts about how you should work less for more money, please consider the moment you first took the job.
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