Former Ketchum Employee on FedEx Gaffe: ‘It Helps Me Today’

Remember when James Andrews, then a vice president at Ketchum went to go visit his client FedEx in Memphis? Upon arrival, he tweeted of the city that he would “die if he had to live” there. Needless to say, the comment created a firestorm in the blogosphere, the client was not happy and Ketchum had to issue an apology. Andrews has since left Ketchum to start his own agency.

Did the gaffe leave lasting marks? If it did, it didn’t hurt him, Andrews told BusinessWeek. “It helps me today,” he said. “I use it as a case study. It creates authenticity.”

So, the next time the social media mob comes after you for a mistake, remember: they’ll forget about it in a few months anyway, and it may even help your cred.

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