Chevron: Roughly 10% of Americans "hate us and our industry"
According to Helen Clark, Chevron Corp.'s manager of corporate brand and reputation, roughly 10 percent of Americans "hate us and our industry and there's nothing we can do to change their minds." The reason, according to Peter Beutel, president of oil commodities consultant Cameron Hanover, is because most consumers don't understand the industry because they only know about volatile gasoline prices and news reports about big oil's record profits.
Hmmm, if only 10 percent of Americans hate Chevron and "big oil" in general, what about the rest of the population? There are apparently just as many who are on their side, and the other 80 percent are undecided. In other words, they need some persuasion to choose one side or the other. Chevron has the obvious goal of swaying those undecided consumers to see things their way, so they are starting a new advertising campaign today, starting with a TV spot on CBS. Additionally, they have updated their website and created a new game, which is accessible there, called "Energyville". In this game, players can choose what types of energy to give their fictional "Power City", and they can see how each one impacts the city, good and bad. You know, 'cause choosing what types of energy to sell consumers is based solely on what their benefits and drawbacks are... but whose benefits and drawbacks are the primary concern?
[Source: Advertising Age]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
bobby 12:20AM (12/16/2008)
thanks chevron.........by sitting on the NiMH patents, you've successfully allowed china to take the lead in the production of electric and electric hybrid vehicles..............a market that america , japan, korea, and germany could have dominated for years............this would have solved in large part the employment problems associated with detroit auto maufactureing, and given america a step-up/out of the recession that we are all in now...(except big oil, of course)
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Tony Belding 10:39AM (9/30/2007)
This from the company that abuses the patent system to suppress the use of NiMH batteries in cars. I'd say they've earned their share of scorn.
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philmcneal 3:01PM (9/30/2007)
ironic enough i hate them to guts, but i've always used their gas from the day i started driving. You just can't beat chevron for techron even if they are the biggest blood killers of the earth.
Monopoly at its finest.
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Chris M 6:01PM (9/30/2007)
Only 10%? Sounds a bit low to me, thanks to a few oil spills and pollution and jacked-up prices and record breaking profits and sheer greedy arrogance.
Still, Chevron could get a considerable amount of goodwill if they'd only let their Cobasys division promote electrics and plug-in hybrids, and even promote and sell automotive NiMH battery packs directly to EV hobbyists and PHEV converters. Heck, they could even make a profit by doing good!
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Rick 3:54PM (10/01/2007)
Only 10%? 10% of males between the ages of 55-57 maybe. The percentage of US citizens I'm sure is much, much, higher.
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Rick 3:54PM (10/01/2007)
And specifically Chevron? They charge you 5 cents more per gallon if you don't pay in cash!? Try seeing if that tidbit is mentioned prominantly next to their competing price board. Seriously, who drops $40+ a week in 'cash' at the gas station?
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MikeW 12:46PM (10/03/2007)
I wish other stations allowed the discount for cash. The credit card companies usually require the same surcharge (1-2%?) even if you pay cash. Screw that.
Frack the 'cashless society' nonsense. I don't thumbscan for anything or anyone.
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Jim 3:44PM (10/05/2007)
Jared Diamond ("Collapse") actually gives Chevron pretty good marks in terms of environmental responsibility.
Sitting on the NiMH patents though, is pretty heinous, Every good company has to be willing to eat their own children, and if oil can be supplanted by electric storage, then all they did was give time for competitors to go after a market they could have controlled.
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