(The Photo is unrelated to Hurricane Sandy)
Tons of news and reports about the hurricane at east coast just flood like how it is in New York City.
This is a disaster without doubts.
Besides news and micro news (like Official Twitters), people's email inboxes are jammed by online stores, including brands' online stores, group purchase sites and flash sale sites.
I must say, I am impressed by those flash sale sites, especially whose headquarters or operation centers are at east.
In their messages to customers, they show concerns to people who live at east first. Then address their will to accomplish the deliveries on time and the hardness of working under this extremely tough condition: bad traffic, power out and gas exhausted. And then, they remind their customers that the deliveries may delay due to the consequences of the hurricane and indicate that they will work as hard as they can to make sure the packages arrive their destinations. At the end, they express their concern to their customers again with encouraging phrases.
I believe that most customers understand the delay of their orders at this moment. But these emails definitely bring the flash sale sites closer to their customers and increase the loyalty of the customers.
This is what we say 'Good PR under Emergent Events'.
However, my friend (she lives in NYC and she's fine) told me that one clothing brand whose headquarters are at west coast didn't react appropriately to the hurricane. Instead of soothing the customers, they made a 'joke': "In case you're bored during the storm..." Alright, the residents at east don't have too much "entertainment" during the storm, even Halloween got cancelled (that really makes me sad), how dare you called this "boring" ? You may say, well, we are at west and we have no actual feeling about the hurricane. Then an easier way for you to react to it is no reaction... Although it would be bad PR too, better than the insulting joke you made.
So, although I live at west and I don't suffer any pain from the disaster, I will think about it next time when I pass by this brand's stores. Instead, I think I will keep shopping on the flash sale sites that did a good job in reacting to the hurricane.
Plus, they usually have really good deals.
Summer Fang
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