The Trump Effect

Donald Trump is a former big businessman turned President of The United States.  As president he recently put some big businesses in a tough situation.  As a result of his comments on the recent NFL National Anthem protests, many businesses are having to make statements about their opinions on the protests.  Some companies are keeping their heads down and waiting for the storm to blow over.  While others are getting their statements out there as soon as possible.  

Companies' decisions to make a certain stance or statement can have a big impact on customers' opinions about the company.  Marketing and Public Relations departments of these companies are going to be very busy trying to decide what to do.  While others are immediately just putting out statements to get their opinion out there so people don't wonder what they think.

Under Armour, Nike, and Ford were part of the group of companies that crafted a statement immediately.  Nike was the only company that chose to support one side of the debate.  Nike basically stated that they were supportive of the players and whatever decisions they make.  This statement could anger consumers that support players standing for the National Anthem and the President.  Under Armour and Ford chose to remain on the fence when making their statements on this situation.

The smart decision could be, sit and wait to see what the consumers agree with.  This could be a good time for Marketing departments to set up focus groups and surveys to see what the consumers will do.  It lets the companies make a decision with as much information as possible.  President Trump is making things difficult for the NFL, their sponsors, and any other businesses related to sports.  Overall, it should be interesting to see what these huge companies do in response to the comments made by the President of the United States.