Have you ever talked about someone behind their back? Have you spread rumors about a person to try to chance people’s perceptions of the person in question? If you have– did it occur to you that this simple thing could cause such PR and reputation issues for that particular person? A study that appeared on PsychOrg.com says that gossip is more powerful than facts when shaping opinions about people or organizations.
This study is very interesting, because it shows that people are more influenced by the opinions of those that they know. As PR professionals, this shows us that we may have to change our strategies and tactics when conducting our campaigns. Instead of targeting some of the larger groups of audiences, we might need to find out who these individuals listen to and get our communication messages to these influencers or opinion leaders.
But what happens if these “gossip statements” are false? What does the person do to regain their reputation and image around these people? First of all, we have to make sure that we address the main statements of the “gossip.” For example, if you are being targeted by gossip, the best person to prove that any gossip is incorrect is you– you need to be your own brand and image ambassador. All you have to do is be yourself and let everyone make their own judgments. Sure, there are always going to be people that may not change their minds, but there will be some that will.
This happens a lot in the business workplace, but it can also be seen in the athletic industry as well. There are some people that do not want to win on the athletic battlefield (meaning competitions, games, exhibitions, etc), but they want to win off the field, so what do they do? Spread gossip. But what does this accomplish in the long-run? Not much, because if the gossip is true– then it reflects poorly on that particular person that the gossip is about. But if the gossip is not true, then it reflects poorly on the person that is spreading the gossip.
These are just some of my thoughts on the situation. Hope you all are doing well and have a great day!
Best Wishes,
Karen
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Karen’s Public Relations Blog » Power of Gossip Follow-up: Study says that it is all about YOUR Friends! · November 2, 2007 at 3:28 pm
[…] I wrote about how gossip and talking to people you know really influences your overall decisions a few days ago, and there is a follow-up article regarding the same issue that I found interesting. An article that appeared on Psych.Org states that gossip all depends on the number of friends the person in question has. So basically, the more friends you have, the faster the gossip spreads. […]