Despite it all... I'm not the only one who likes Chick-fil-A

Ever since I had my first waffle fry when I was like 6 years old, I have always liked Chick-fil-A. Going into my research project on the company's corporate image crises that occured last summer, I wondered if I would be among a strinking client base of the company. After all, people were enraged when Dan Cathy, the company's CEO, stated his strong belief that marriage should be the union of a man and a woman with no exceptions. People protested and companies (like Jim Henson) severed their ties with the restaurant.

As I have conducted research with my partner, Brenna Middleton, we have found that this is not the case at all. The company has done well after the crisis - quite well. Even in the "thick of it," the company saw a surge in support from its conservative fan base. Before the crisis, the company had a Chick-fil-A "spirit day" of sorts, where it invited its customers to come out and show how much they love Chick-fil-A. People dressed as cows and such. (You've probably seen pictures of the company's similar events.) When announced on the company's Facebook page, about 2,000 people indicated they would attend. Meanwhile, two months later when the company was being attacked for its CEO's personal beliefs, more than 600,000 people participated in a Chick-fil-A "appreciation day." On average, the company's chain locations saw a 29 percent increase in business - about 340 more customers at each restaurant than normal.

Of course this is an extreme case, but as time has continued, the company continues to do well. As we continue our research, we'll look at what the company did well and how they managed to recover from the crisis. We also hope to find data on whether the company has seen an increase/decrease in business in the long run.

Stay tuned....

Food is the quickest way to my heart, not my head....

I don't like the term "foodie," but I do love food, so I'm not sure where that leaves me in terms of a title. However, I know where that leaves me when I'm hungry: at some restaurant or alternative source of food (home-cooking!) with mouth-watering food that never fails to "hit the spot." I'm very open-minded when it comes to this category, including various foods (ranging from mac and cheese to filet mignon) and settings (Taco Cabana to Ruth Chris'). One of my favorite fast food restaurants is Chick-fil-A. I think the chain has mastered:

• Delicious, high quality food
• Simple menu
• Innovative ways to be more efficient, particularly in handling large lunch crowds
• Employee training for optimal customer service
• The best milkshake on the fast food market

Despite all of its excellent characteristics, the company recently came under fire for its owner's opposition to the LGBT movement. Instead of restraining criticism to the individual, the public caused a major company crises by denouncing the company for its leader's ideas and acting independently from his beliefs. As this topic is relatively recent, pertains to PR, and involves food, my partner and I have chosen it as the subjext of our class research paper on image repair.

As my partner, Brenna Middleton, and I discussed the incident and our approach to using it for this paper, we realized that there were several pieces of information that we needed to analyze:

• What is the extended background on the incident.]?
• Did the company ever apologize?
• Cyber identity impersonation 
• Was this ordeal positive or negative, overall.

What we already have found, however, is that most people did not heed the negative press and continued eating there as they had before. This demonstrates that, like myself, the quickest way to a public's heart is through its stomach, not it's brain.

The Choices That Are All Around Us....

There was a study conducted several years ago that asked participants if they'd rather go to an ice cream parlor with 99 flavors or with only 3 flavors. The majority of people chose the latter option, because they felt it wouldn't be as overwhelming. I've grown up in a society that emphasizes the value of variety - the whole "everyone is like a snowflake" mentality - but the truth is, the less options I have, the happier I tend to be.

Yo Dreams' customers have many choices
when selecting the perfect froyo garnishes. 

Choices. I've had to make a lot of those at school. Which major, which class, which professor, which time, which seat.... Even with my work at Yo Dreams Frozen Yogurt, my team and I have had to make decisions. We decided that we wanted the business to come away with a strong online presence and a thriving customer base of students and Waco citizens. At the same time, we team members decided we wanted to finish with more than just class credit or something to add to our portfolio; we ultimately wanted to help Yo Dreams succeed in what they're doing today, tomorrow, next week, and 10 years from now.

It's not always pleasant having to make choices, but having free will is something for which to be grateful.

A New Story for a New Time....

Well, after a five-year sabbatical from blogging, I am back. I must admit that it isn't out of my own volition that I am writing here again, but it is at the suggestion of a class syllabus that threatens me with a reduced class grade if I don't comply with its rules.

So here I am. By "here," I mean not only blogging again, but also "here" at Baylor University, in my senior year, at 23 years of age, and at a point where my thoughts about my future are infinitely expanding by the millisecond. With 19 hours of classes and 17 hours of work this semester, I don't have much time to think about those things, though. One of my classes, media programming, has challenged the members of my class to partner with a local business and work to promote its PR goals. I will chronicle my work there along with other anecdotes from my life over the next several blog posts.

The company that my team of four people chose is YoDreams Frozen Yogurt. It's located about two minutes from Baylor's campus and equally closely to my apartment. Why "froyo?" When talking with my partners Lauren Krieg, Madeline Lloyd, and Katie Burns, we decided that we wanted to help a new company as it establishes a reputation with local citizens and netizens. YoDreams just had its official grand opening today, so it wholly fit this criteria, along with several others we established. Plus, it gives my teammates and me an unparalleled excuse to consume froyo.

We all share the title of "assistant director of public relations" at the company, but we have individual responsibilities for the work we are doing. My work is a hybrid of writing, editing, and design tasks. I like these jobs and see them as important parts in the company's fulfillment of its local/social media potentials. I will specifically be writing press releases, working on the company's Facebook and LinkedIn pages, and helping the team produce innovative ideas for publicizing the company.

I look forward to the work and experience I'll find behind me at the semester's end.

My Adventurous Night in a Theater

We went to see Camelot at the Majestic Theater, last night. (For those of you who don't know, the Majestic is an amazingly beautiful, old-fashioned theater that was built in the early 1900s in downtown SA.) During intermission, I was on the phone in one of the more "private" hallways outside of the boxes. While there, I saw two doors that said "Not An Exit." I was instantly intrigued by what might be behind the doors, so I tried one of them, but it was locked. I didn't want to try the other door, because there were people looking right at it from their box. I went and sat down, but my curiosity wouldn't go away. I decided to try the door anyway. Sure enough, it was open and the room was entirely dark!

I flipped a light switch, and saw that I was in an L-shaped hallway. After I turned the corner, I went to the only door at the end, but the room was pretty mundane. I figured I better leave before someone caught me, but just then, I heard the door open and close. I didn't know what to think, but I knew I was caught!

Soon, I saw that the person who had entered the dark, creepy hallway was NOT an ax murderer, but rather a man on his way to the mundane room. When he saw me, he asked if I was lost. While briskly making my way towards the exit of the hallway, I told him that I wasn't and thanked him for asking. Then he was like, "Okay, what did you do to my room???" I assured him I wasn't up to trouble. I said to him, "I have sat in the box outside of this door for many years and always wondered what was in here. Tonight, I decided to find out!" He said that since I was back there anyway, I might as well see everything in the room. It was mostly filled with boring sound equipment and the likes. I told him I was hoping that the door was the entrance to the Queen's Suite on the third level. (It has an awesome white peacock in it.) He said, "Well it is, but you have to go up a ladder that is bolted to the wall in the dark hallway." Then he asked me if I wanted to climb the ladder and see the attic. At first, I thought he was joking, but I realized he was serious and took him up on his offer.

After we had both climbed into the hole in the plastered ceiling, he clicked on his flashlight, and the real adventure began! We were standing in a small, dusty room. He showed me some frayed wires and explained that they used to be part of the control panel for the theater's giant pipe organ. I didn't even know that they had an organ. It has been there since the theater's opening. They would play it during the silent movies and what not, but it has been in disrepair for many decades. He then took me to a rather large side-room that contained all the organ's pipes. They were lined up and standing tall like soldiers marching into battle. He took a small pipe from the organ and blew into it. It made a sound like a flute, or -- and imagine this -- an organ. lol He handed me the pipe to inspect. I must of looked enthralled, because much to my surprise, he said I could take it as a souvenir. I was practically giddy. (In a very masculine way, of course.) He told me not to handle it too much, as the pipes are made of lead.

Knowing that intermission was almost over, he briefly pointed to another ladder and said that it would first take me to the Queen's Box, then continue all the way until it reached the attic above the theater's ceiling.

With that, we returned to the floor of origin. After thanking him for his generosity and hospitality, we went back to our respective places in the theater and enjoyed the evening's remainder.

For once in my life, I colored outside the lines and as a reward, I was given a jewel from the royal crown! So if you notice me acting abnormal, you'll know that it is from lead poisoning that resulted from an awesome evening at the Majestic! :-)

Brent the Magnificent

The Tragedy

Cold, so cold... The wetness of my clothes clung to my body as if gravity itself was pulling them to me. The wind, the rain... The car was now starting to lose its grasp on the pavement below. The water had risen to its windows, the current was just too strong. Shivers of terror, shivers of coldness... The car was overtaken by the unruly water. Helpless, hopeless, powerless... what could be done? All I could do is watch as the car disappeared from sight, as the darkness enveloped it.

We had been coming home through the torrential rain from a late evening engagement in a town outside of Marble Falls. We had just stopped to refuel our car, and I was drenched with water during the process. My mom was struggling to see the road, when she saw what looked to be two sets of brake lights in the distance. When we came closer, we saw that two 18-wheelers had stopped in the middle of the road. We weren't sure why until we saw the raging flood water that was only 10 feet in front of them. It was about 4 feet over the road and there was a car that was stuck in the middle of the water. An ambulance came to help, but soon left after realizing it was no match for the monster of swirling debris and currents that challenged their rescue mission.

Can you imagine the despair and discouragement of seeing what you think will save you, but only to find that it's left you to fend for yourself? ...

So that's the story that's been on my mind. In the end, I don't know if they were ever rescued. Indubitably, it's a tragedy.

I'll try write a happier story, soon. Until then...

Brent the Magnificent

The Dilemma

Okay, I haven't written anything in nearly a month. I'm such a bad blogger. haha! Sorry.

Yesterday, I was driving back from taking my mom and sister a Band Aid to help sooth a blister they had acquired while walking their 7 mile route. As I was driving, I noticed a car parked on the side of the road. Typically, that wouldn't be worth writing a blog about, but this car had its dome light on!!!! *gasp* I kept driving, thinking that they'll be more responsible next time. For some reason, this really didn't remove my feeling of needing to go tell someone. I pictured them trying to jump start their car at midnight when they're leaving their friends' house. Why would they have to be jumping their car? Because I didn't help them. At this point, I felt way too guilty to keep driving. I turned the car around and went back to the house. I got out of the car and went to the door. I knocked on the leaded glass. It seemed like an eternity before someone answered, but sure enough, I soon saw an obscured figure coming to answer my knock. It was a lady in her mid 40's. I told her that I had noticed the dome light having been left on. She exclaimed, "Oh, God bless you! That is sooooo kind of you. We would have been out there, late tonight, trying to jump it." This made me feel like it was all worth it. I single handedly saved the world from utter chaos. No need to thank me, I'm just doing my job.

So the next time you see someone's lights left on, remember: "Only you can prevent dead batteries."

Brent the Magnificent