Walmart's Marketing of Juneteenth-Flavored Ice Cream

M12: Final Case Study Paper
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Marketing practitioners and scholars increasingly view media imagery as vital to their promotional objectives. They consider how customers of diverse backgrounds interact with information and messages and thus internalize as well as include them into their psyches. Negative characteristics of media messages can damage a company's reputation. This is because advertising can be used to propagate stereotypes. In this vein, the industry's social and institutional roles in influencing misunderstanding along the gender and race lines should be emphasized in such contexts. With the current emphasis on social justice and sustainable business models, companies should be careful when developing their business strategies to ensure they are congruent to such ends. Corporate scandals or controversies can undermine the company's image, growth, and sustainability. This paper evaluated Walmart's controversial marketing of Juneteenth-flavored ice cream to augment the understanding of public relations initiatives, their outcomes, and the forces shaping them.
Overview of Organization
Walmart is a retail corporation operating in different countries, established as a small discount retailer in Ark. It has since developed into a large and influential retail chain worldwide. The organization primarily aims to offer consumers a distinct shopping experience, providing a wider assortment of products at lower prices in physical and online stores. The company's focus on lower processes forms the foundation of its strategy and drives it to success. Walmart operates 10,500 clubs and stores across different countries, rendering it significant in the world retail industry (Walmart, n.d.). Walmart has a vast workforce, employing about 2.1 million associates worldwide, with 1.6 million working in the United States of America (Walmart, n.d.). It emphasizes worker development and career advancement, considering that 75% of store operations management teams in the United States began as hourly workers (Walmart, n.d.). The organization's lower price commitment, widespread presence, and dedication to worker development have enhanced its position as a leading retail store that progressively serves communities and consumers globally (Walmart, n.d.).
Reason for Choosing Walmart
Considering the recent controversy over Walmart's "Juneteenth ice cream" product, it is the perfect choice for this case study. The organization faced criticism for taking advantage of a solemn holiday to advance its commercial purposes, to which it later apologized (Bogage, 2022). As a retail store operating in different countries with a vast consumer base, and crucial influence on the global retail industry, the organization's handling of such sensitive issues is an intriguing case for analysis. Such an incident offers an opportunity to evaluate how a significant organization with a different audience handled a culturally vital event and the ensuing response from different stakeholders.
Overview of Current Reputation Among Stakeholders
The company experiences a mixture of both negative and positive perceptions currently. Walmart experiences significant criticism concerning its impacts on local businesses, labor practices, and environmental effects. Customers have praised the company for its accessibility and affordability, with employees satisfied with the organization's efforts to enhance employee growth and create more job opportunities (Walmart, n.d.). Such mixed reputations present the case study as vital and relevant as it demonstrates how Walmart’s public relations efforts could affect its general perception among stakeholders.
Research and Identifying Issues, Opportunities, Solutions, and Values
While assessing how Walmart handled the "Juneteenth ice cream" problem, it is vital to evaluate the research utilization when pointing out the problems, core values, opportunities, and solutions. Marketing typically leverages racial identity to portray promotional strategy and build brand identity. In the recent past, advertisers have been using imagery to integrate their products, services, and brands with racial empowerment themes, as was the case for Walmart (McFarlane-Alvarez & Norman, 2023). The marketing portrayals' visual nature is a crucial racism construct in marketing because images show meaning and contribute to shaping social perspectives towards cultures and people (McFarlane-Alvarez & Norman, 2023). In this vein, Walmart did not extensively comprehend the historical and cultural essence of the Juneteenth holiday. To ensure more comprehensive research efforts, it would be helpful for Walmart to engage stakeholders such as African-American community representatives, cultural experts, and historians in intense consultations to understand the essence of the holiday entirely. Marketers should consider the underlying cultural values in various markets since cultural values affect consumers (Shankar et al., 2020). Also, using social listening tools, focus groups, and surveys would be vital in facilitating Walmart to acquire different sentiments and perspectives to ensure a more suitable and sensitive campaign.
Identifying Key Stakeholders/Publics
It is critical for public relations efforts to point out significant stakeholders and understand their concerns, values, and interests. In the context of "Juneteenth ice cream," the organization did not comprehensively capture the sensitivities and expectations of its diverse consumer base, specifically the black community. Walmart failed to identify the key stakeholders that the campaign would affect. Walmart should acknowledge the significance of cultural inclusivity and actively engage people from different communities to understand their views. Pinpointing key stakeholders and conducting extensive stakeholder analyses would be crucial for Walmart to effectively structure its campaign, supporting their preferences and showing comprehension of their needs (Shankar et al., 2020).
Articulating Measurable and Clear Goals and Objectives
While evaluating how Walmart handled the "Juneteenth ice cream" issue, it is crucial to assess the measurability and clarity of the set goals and objectives for the marketing campaign. The organization did not clearly identify the campaign's precise go...