PRSSA at SIUC

By Logan Fox

A company always has to be ready to make that quick, bold, and unexpected move a tanytime. In fact, for some businesses this bold public relations move has shifted them from no one into an elite company worth millions. In one of themost recent significant public relations stunts well known investor Peter Shankman tweeted, jokingly, a few hours before flying into New Jersey that he wanted Morton Steakhouse to meet him at the airport. Unlike most request made on that tweet, Morton Steakhouse actually met him in the airport with a steak. Morton is now reaping the benefits of free press as it is being talked about all over the news and blogs.

Jet Blue Airliner also had a very successful public relations stunt during “carmaggedon” in LA. They found the shutdown of freeway 405 primetime for them to grow popular. The airliner charged 4 dollars per flight from Long Beach to Burbank. Not only did they save the city from how disastrous “carmegedon” could have been, but they were the talk on every radio station, TV station and everyone inthe city of LA.

Half.com in 1999 bought the name to Halfway Oregon and changed it to Half.com for $100,000. The Outrageous stunt made them skyrocket over night. In a little over a year they were bought out by eBay for 350 million. The next year Halfway Oregon changed its name back.

Blendtec took its public relation stunt to the internet in 2006 with their “Will it Blend” YouTube videos. These videos show their high power blenders blending items from golf balls to iPads. Almost everyone knows these popular videos now and its wastefulness.This campaign was so successful that in just one year after it started this campaign, it had boosted its sales 500%.

Taco Bell on April 1st,1996 pulled off an April fool’s joke that increased their sales over a million dollars the next few days. They published in almost every single major newspaper that they were purchasing the Liberty Bell and changing its name to the Taco Liberty Bell. Even though by noon April fools day Taco Bell admitted it was a prank. Though it was short and quirky it still benefitted them a lot.