| Model Public Relations Saves Tylenol from Extinction Tylenol is the favorite brand of non-aspirin pain reliever today. Yet ten years ago, when seven people died within hours�even minutes�after taking Tylenol gelcaps laced with cyanide, marketing experts agreed that Johnson & Johnson would never be able to sell a product under the name �Tylenol� again. Johnson & Johnson regained the trust of the public, and their impressive 37% control of the market, with what has been called one of the best examples of public relations in history. According to experts, they followed some very important rules. They were honest and showed compassion. They did not make the situation worse by trying to distance themselves from it, or blame the media for exaggerating. Johnson & Johnson began by convincing the public that �Tylenol is as much a victim as the people who swallowed cyanide-laced capsules .� A day or two after the first poisoning, corporate vice president for public relations Lawrence Foster said, ��It appears to be the work of a demented individual. It is believed that the capsules were tampered with at one of several distribution centers in the Chicago area after the drug left our manufacturing plants�� In addition to showing consumers that this was not Tylenol�s fault, Johnson & Johnson projected the image that �The company is candid, contrite and compassionate, committed to solving the murders and protecting the public,� as noted by one reporter of the Washington Post. When asked about the impact of the crisis on sales and growth, the spokesman for the Johnson & Johnson division that manufactures Tylenol said, �It is just about the last thing on our minds. Our immediate problem is notification to consumers.� Similarly, the vice-president of Johnson & Johnson declined comment about possible effect on corporate earnings but said, �Our first concern is to resolve the problem by working with the authorities around the clock to determine who contaminated the capsules after they left the factory�This must have some impact on earnings. There is a greater priority at the moment.� Yet perhaps most important to the preservation of Tylenol, was not only the words of Johnson & Johnson representatives, but the actions of the company. They immediately pulled bottles from the batch in question, stopped production in one factory, and stopped their commercials. Ultimately, when a man in California was poisoned with a different drug placed in capsules, Tylenol recalled the capsules across the country. Although this cost Johnson & Johnson tens-of-millions of dollars, to the surprise of members of the media, government, and public, they did this of their own initiative. Above all, Tylenol knew that tamper proof packaging was vital to restoring public confidence. When they were ready, a Johnson & Johnson chairman said that the company would resume selling Tylenol in a few weeks in triple-sealed, tamper-resistant packages. He said the company considered it �a moral imperative, as well as good business� he also mentioned that the company would absorb costs of about 2.4 cents per package to provide the new protection and some 40 million coupons published to promote the product. These $2.50 coupons virtually provided bottles for free. They could be obtained in newspapers or by calling a toll-free number. In addition, consumers could exchange their Extra-Strength Tylenol capsules for tablets. Once Johnson & Johnson became the first drug company to have its products on the shelves in the new type of packaging now mandated by the federal government, they began focusing on advertising and regaining their customers. They started marketing to doctors and distributing samples of gelcaps and tablets, as had proved so effective when they were first starting out. They launched a major ad campaign on television and spent $1 million on engravers to redesign 650 pieces of artwork for products. Johnson & Johnson medical experts went on morning talk shows to extol the safety of the new packaging to the public. Finally, they ran commercials saying, �We want you to continue to trust Tylenol.� . |