Boycotting and the Power of Negative Word of Mouth

“We don’t tweet, we bark!” @AAWOA

Four days after Whistler Outdoor Adventures was found to have slaughtered 100 sled dogs, the Facebook page “Boycotting Outdoor Adventures in BC, Whistler” had nearly 45,000 members, demonstrating the vast power of negative word of mouth. The dogs were brutally killed after a dramatic drop in business following the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games.

The story came to light this past week after a WorkSafeBC investigation became public on January 25th. Accounts of cruelty are very graphic and include reports that the dogs were killed in front of each other and thrown into a massive grave. Naturally this has lead to the massive uprise and media frenzy from animal lovers to random TV viewers.

From a marketing perspective, this represents the amazing power of word of mouth, especially when it is emphasized by the negative impact caused by this incident. A story about the killings is the fourth link when “Whistler Outdoor Adventures” is googled, a twitter account @AAOWA has been created to represent Advocates Against Outdoor Adventures Whistler, and numerous Facebook statues and groups continue to pop up about boycotting the company.

Most oustanding however is the fact that almost 45,000 people have liked the Facebook page in 3 days. This number is hands down higher than the number of people who actually use the sled dog service, and dramatically illustrates the rapid, wild fire effect of negative word of mouth.

As of Feb. 1, 2010, the Outdoor Adventures website states that they have “voluntarily suspended the operations of Howling Dog Tours.”

Read The Vancouver Sun Story here:

http://www.vancouversun.com/news/sled+dogs+slaughtered+Whistler+when+tourism+slumped+Report/4196610/story.html?tab=PHOT

Facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/AAOAW

Twitter: @AAOAW