[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/aokmarketing.com\/is-it-facebook-or-is-it-you\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/aokmarketing.com\/is-it-facebook-or-is-it-you\/","headline":"Is It Facebook\u2026 Or Is It Your Board?","name":"Is It Facebook\u2026 Or Is It Your Board?","description":"How does that saying go\u2014that those who can\u2019t remember the past, are destined to repeat it. In the marketing world, it\u2019s an adage that should be treated as professional gospel. Every year we\u2019re regaled with stories of corporations making strategic decisions that might make sense on paper\u2014especially from an accounting and operational perspective\u2014but wind up … Continue reading Is It Facebook\u2026 Or Is It Your Board?<\/span><\/a>","datePublished":"2018-05-01","dateModified":"2026-07-17","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/aokmarketing.com\/author\/jana-legaspi\/#Person","name":"Jana Legaspi","url":"https:\/\/aokmarketing.com\/author\/jana-legaspi\/","identifier":8,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ba3039ce7c5eedb92f315518b69aea1d90d5c2076ce893d078c6f29cf6ddd032?s=96&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ba3039ce7c5eedb92f315518b69aea1d90d5c2076ce893d078c6f29cf6ddd032?s=96&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"AOK Marketing","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/aokmarketing.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/AOK-Marketing-Logo.png","url":"https:\/\/aokmarketing.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/AOK-Marketing-Logo.png","width":126,"height":53}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/aokmarketing.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Sears-Canada.jpg","url":"https:\/\/aokmarketing.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Sears-Canada.jpg","height":369,"width":557},"url":"https:\/\/aokmarketing.com\/is-it-facebook-or-is-it-you\/","about":["Facebook","CMO"],"wordCount":772,"keywords":["Facebook Ads"],"articleBody":"How does that saying go\u2014that those who can\u2019t remember the past, are destined to repeat it. In the marketing world, it\u2019s an adage that should be treated as professional gospel.Every year we\u2019re regaled with stories of corporations making strategic decisions that might make sense on paper\u2014especially from an accounting and operational perspective\u2014but wind up proving to be remarkably tone deaf, utterly avoidable public relations disasters that put their brand at risk.Yet they keep making the same mistakes.TD BankLast year we had the example of TD Bank fending off charges of improper sales practices by its front-line staff. The bank issued a standard boilerplate response that seemed more about mitigating legal risk than a contrite expression of regret and a promise to do better.SearsOr how about Sears Canada? Before the former retail giant folded it unceremoniously dismissed thousands of employees with little or no severance compensation, many of whom are now worried over the future of the company pension plan.One of those let go was Peter Myers\u2014older brother of famous Canadian Austin Powers and Shrek actor Mike\u2014who recruited his famous sibling for a 2014 Sears Canada TV commercial. The spot sought to reassure the public that Sears stores would remain open, warranties would be honoured and that thousands of jobs would be preserved because the brand was \u201cnot going anywhere.\u201dThat was until Peter Myers, erstwhile spokesperson, went somewhere\u2014out the door. His termination created an unnecessary PR distraction during an already tumultuous period for the embattled company.Facebook’s Current DisasterCurrently, we have the Facebook privacy debacle in which data mining firm Cambridge Analytica allegedly leveraged the data of 50 million of the social media platform\u2019s users to the benefit of the Trump campaign team during the 2016 U.S. presidential election.That it took Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg about four days to publicly comment on the controversy is remarkable. We can\u2019t be sure who made the decision to keep the boss under wraps for that long, but there\u2019s a good chance the legal department was involved and decided that it was best to stay mum just a little while longer. Or maybe they just wanted to protect their share price.Either way, the strategic decision to refrain from commenting likely had a greater, negative impact on the Facebook brand than if the CEO had offered a swift explanation of what went wrong.The big issue here is one that plagues organizations from large corporations, to small and medium-sized businesses: the marketing department is often the last one included in relevant business conversations. This is a mistake.And that\u2019s not only apparent in times of corporate crisis.On many occasions, we\u2019ve worked with companies who develop outstanding marketing campaigns that have nothing to do with their leaders\u2019 or sales teams\u2019 growth objectives\u2014indeed, the left hand doesn\u2019t know what the right hand is doing. Money gets blown, executives wonder why marketing seems to be a budgetary black hole and has a difficult time quantifying or delivering results.At the same time, sales and business development reps continue pounding the pavement to hit their targets and become more disconnected from the people tasked with supporting their efforts.The Solution is Simple:Make a greater effort to ensure your marketing people have a seat at the boardroom table.Share The VisionThey need to know about your company\u2019s strategic direction and should even be involved in setting it. The same rule applies if you contract the services of third-party agencies. In fact, their outsider perspectives and insights can be invaluable in helping to assess market trends and determine how best to market your products or services.Alternatively, if your business is flailing or, worse, operations are winding down, marketers are the ones who can help craft messaging and manage relations with everyone from employees to customers. A good marketing-communications team can do wonders to help contain the damage when times get tough.They can also pull the plug on marketing initiatives that are dated or no longer appropriate (kind of like the Myers ad).So, next time you endeavour to bring marketing into the conversation after important strategic decisions are formulated and a vision for the company is laid out in detail, take a step back and reconsider that approach. Save a seat at the boardroom table and ask your marketers to contribute ideas\u2014while highlighting opportunities and challenges\u2014from their professional perspective.Following that simple step would have helped many companies avoid embarrassing marketing faux pas or saved them from misguided operational moves."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Is It Facebook\u2026 Or Is It Your Board?","item":"https:\/\/aokmarketing.com\/is-it-facebook-or-is-it-you\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]