Putting Actions Behind Ethics

One of the bedrock values that has helped keep S&A Cherokee in business for 31 years is ethical conduct. Our founder, Ron Smith, APR, joined the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) in 1978 and has always encouraged staff to uphold the PRSA Member Code of Ethics.

It’s one thing to sign your name to a piece of paper. It’s another to actively live those words by striving to act ethically in all situations.

The following are just a few examples of how our staff has adhered to the Code’s core values of advocacy, honesty, expertise, independence, loyalty and fairness.

• A client shared some company news with us and asked our expert opinion on whether or not it was worth issuing a press release. We answered honestly that it was not extremely newsworthy, and in doing so passed on billable hours and income to the agency that could have been justified.

• A dubious national magazine wanted to profile the CEO of one of our clients, contingent upon them handing over a list of partners and vendors who would be asked to take out congratulatory ads. We politely declined.

• PR clients occasionally ask us to secure coverage in one of our publications (Cary Magazine, Auto Remarketing, SubPrime Auto Finance News, etc.), and we inform them our editors have specifically been instructed not to show any favoritism. Any coverage is obtained strictly on its own merits.

• We distributed to various local media free tickets to one of our client’s performances, with absolutely no expectation of securing positive coverage. Some of the outlets didn’t even review the performance, and some provided mixed reviews.

• A banner we produced for a client contained a misspelling. We owned up to the mistake and ate the cost of the misprinted banner.

• S&A Cherokee will take on only one client in any distinct industry. This ensures that there is no possibility whatsoever of any proprietary information being shared with a competitor.

To discover how S&A Cherokee can ethically help with your marketing and communications needs, contact us for a free consultation at (919) 674-6020.