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How Should Wal-Mart Handle Blog Ridicule? Ignore It

No right move on 'People of Walmart' pics of fashion misses

By Harry Kimball,  Newser Staff

Posted Sep 9, 2009 6:09 PM CDT
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(Newser) – A wildly popular new blog mocks Wal-Mart and its customers, and encourages others to join in by uploading their own photos and comments. So what should the retail giant do? Nothing, writes BL Ochman in Advertising Age. The site—People of Walmart—isn't “likely to do lasting damage to the brand,” Ochman writes, unless the company tries to stop it. “If Walmart tries to squash the site, they'll quickly become the laughing stock of social media.”

On the other hand, Ochman says, “if they laugh with the site, they'll be accused of laughing at their own customers.” The best course, which Ochman doubts Wal-Mart will take, is to be quiet and let the fuss die down. It may take a while: At last count, the site had 15,000 Twitter followers, and the group of twentysomethings who started it needed to get bigger servers.

Look, more people of Walmart!
Look, more people of Walmart!   (AP Photo)
A Wal-Mart store in Weymouth, Mass.
A Wal-Mart store in Weymouth, Mass.   (AP Photo)
A Wal-Mart store sign.
A Wal-Mart store sign.   (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)
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In a nutshell, that desire to share something you like, or dislike, defines social media. - B.L. Ochman

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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 17 comments
SalParadise
Sep 11, 2009 9:54 AM CDT
@ustme: Political correctness is such a bourgeois luxury.
zackmasson
Sep 11, 2009 4:51 AM CDT
what about tarjae' :p lol
schmidtkoff
Sep 11, 2009 3:22 AM CDT
true kansas. the photos are fabulous. i would never have the nerve to go out in public dressed like most of those people.

The site itself
People of Walmart

 
social networking • humor • photograph • website • retail stores • Walmart • shoppers • People of Walmart

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