Question

Based on the case study: Taco Bell Corporation: Where's the Beef? Source Chapter 3 Strategic Management Communication for Leaders by Robyn Walker

-What other alternative strategies should Taco Bell have implemented in place of the “Thank You” ad?

-Should Taco Bell have avoided the added publicity and instead pursued a quick settlement?

-What is Taco Bell hoping to accomplish with the ad, and are they likely to reach that goal?

-How effective were Taco Bell’s responses prior to the Thank You for Suing Us ad?

Answer 1

• Taco Bell should have implemented alternative strategies instead of the “Thank You” ad such as apologizing for its mistake of not meeting the USDA standards of having 40% fresh meat in the taco filling. It could have had an amicable settlement with the customer rather than show their frustration and spoil their reputation by publishing the “Thank You” ad which does more damage to the company’s reputation and good will. Additionally, the company should have agreed to amend its label name as “Taco meat filling” or similar captions to avoid any such legal lawsuits.
• Absolutely. Taco Bell should have avoided the added publicity and pursued a quick settlement because their non-compliance with USDA requirements are announced to the public in the form of the “Thank You “ ad. This ad shows the company’s irresponsibility towards customer’s concerns. This crisis could have handled better instead of publishing the ad and showing the company’s anger on the customer who has sued Taco Bell.
• Taco Bell is just trying to accomplish the negative publicity and their ability to overcome such attacks on their brands. Since Taco Bell has already demonstrated their ability to overcome many such attacks on their brands such as rat infestation, E-Coli and Salmonella poisoning, the company thinks that they can easily come out of this negative headline. This over confidence is shown in the “Thank You” ad. They are most unlikely reaching this goal because it does greater damage to their reputation and brand rather than show their confidence in overcoming this crisis.
• Taco Bell’s responses to prior to the Thank You for Suing Us ad were quite compromising and they sought solution to the problem rather than publish such ads. For example, in the E-Coli outbreak, Taco Bell’s restaurants were closed when they found that their food is contaminated with E-Coli. When the health officials identified that lettuce was the root cause of the problem, Taco Bell immediately responded by replacing them with cabbage.

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