Western Morning News (Saturday)
Full steam ahead for the ‘other’ P&O
THERE’S an adage in the world of public relations that all news is good news. While Boris Johnson and various members of his Cabinet might find it hard to agree with that idea this week, the belief is that it is better to be talked about than not at all.
And the very best spin doctors have the ability to turn even the worst news into a good PR opportunity.
There’s a great example of that today as P&O Cruises reveal their booking numbers are up – thanks to the dire situation with P&O Ferries.
Most people have been under the mistaken belief that the two companies are one and the same, while in fact they are entirely separate entities.
P&O Cruises is owned by cruise company Carnival Corporation, whereas P&O Ferries is part of Dubai-based logistics giant DP World.
But the luxury cruise operator came under fire on social media when the ferry company sacked nearly 800 seafarers overnight without warning.
It’s fair to say there must have been some head-scratching and wringing of hands in the P&O cruise firm’s PR office before they realised this was actually a golden opportunity.
Yet it did. While the ferry saga was still front page news, it launched a major advertising campaign stating that they had been separate companies for two decades.
The advertising campaign included the line: “Our names may both begin with P&O. But that’s where the similarity ends.”
Asked if this attracted new bookings, Paul Ludlow, president of P&O Cruises, told the PA news agency: “Initially there was a little confusion. We spent quite a lot of money on educating people. It’s turned from a PR challenge to a PR opportunity.
“What we’ve cleverly done is, first remind people that we’re separate, and second tell people that we offer amazing holidays.
“That second line has spread virally because the whole story has spread virally. We’ve seen people booking, I think because they’ve been reminded that cruising with P&O Cruises is wonderful.” He added: “It’s worked out better than we’d thought it might have done.”
Perhaps P&O used the same PR advisers who helped Aldi get over its caterpillar cake problem last year which also revolved around names – although ever so slightly different ones.
Marks & Spencer started legal proceedings when Aldi brought out its Cuthbert Caterpillar cake, which was incredibly similar to the luxury giant’s Colin the Caterpillar.
Being sued for stealing intellectual property is not the best look, but instead of backing down, Aldi went on the PR offensive.
Rather than focusing on winning the day in court, the German budget retailer concentrated on winning in the court of public opinion by using social media to poke fun at the issue to turn the tables on M&S.
It even ripped off the luxury rival’s best-known slogan when it tweeted: ‘This is not just any court case, this is... #FreeCuthbert.’
The reaction to the Tweet triggered a huge campaign, even leading to protests outside M&S – and it worked.
The German discounter saw its social media following soar and nailed the battle of hearts over minds when it launched a limited edition Cuthbert cake with profits going to the Teenage Cancer Trust, encouraging other supermarkets to join its #CaterpillarsForCancer campaign.”
Cuthbert even made an appearance in Aldi’s Christmas advert – being led away by two police officers!
Initially there was a little confusion. We spent quite a lot of money on educating people