Chapter 1 Cases

Chapter 8, Additional Case 3: Being Persuasive About Privacy

Background

You and the other members of your group are in the Department of Corporate Communications at Blanchard Ag-Supply, an agricultural seed company. Your company specializes in developing, breeding, processing, packaging, and distributing a variety of forage and cool-season turfgrass seeds to clients in North America, Australia, and Europe. Forage crops represent a major feed component in the diets of animals that graze or eat hay. Turfgrass seeds are used for home lawns, sports fields, golf courses, and decorative landscaping. Blanchard Ag-Supply relies heavily on its website to conduct its global business. This website includes the company’s privacy statement (Document 8.1).

Although you knew your company posted a privacy statement on its website, you had never taken the time to read it until you received a series of emails forwarded to you by your supervisor, Andrea Dugan. Earlier today, Andrea stopped you in the hallway and said, “I’m caught in the middle of an argument between Lance Bulos in Marketing and Burt Christensen in Legal. Burt wants us to revise the company’s privacy statement; Lance doesn’t think the statement needs any revision. With their permission, I just forwarded you the email messages Burt forwarded to me. I want your help.” (See Documents 8.2 and 8.3.)

“Sure, what sort of help do you need?”

“Right from the first paragraph, where it says we want to balance our company’s need to be competitive and our customers’ right to privacy, something seems off. Would you mind studying the statement and getting back to me on whether it has any problems?” Andrea asked.

“I’ll get back to you in a day or two.”

Your Assignment

Identify those elements of persuasion in Document 8.1 that are used effectively and those that are used ineffectively. Then write a memo responding to Andrea’s request.
A few days later, Andrea stops by your office. “It looks as if we need to revise the privacy statement,” she tells you. “You’ve read the emails from Burt and Lance. I’d like you to recommend an approach to fixing the statement and show me a draft of your revision.” Write Andrea a memo in which you recommend how to fix the statement. Include a revised privacy statement that reflects your recommendations.