All publicity is good publicity: How Astronomer's viral moment could be a 'blessing in disguise'

Business Insider

2 days ago

All eyes this week have been on a once-little-known tech company called Astronomer.
While it's not been the kind of attention Astronomer would likely have hoped for, it's been said that all publicity is good publicity, and some public relations experts who spoke to Business Insider said the newfound fame could, ultimately, benefit the firm.
The viral moment that catapulted the data company into the global spotlight took place at a Coldplay concert near Boston on Wednesday, when a "kiss cam" appeared to show then-Astronomer CEO Andy Byron embracing the company's head of human resources, Kristin Cabot.
After spotting themselves on the big screen, the clearly panicked pair attempted to dodge the camera, prompting Coldplay front man Chris Martin to speculate that they were "having an affair or they're just very shy."
The clip shot around the world and fueled a torrent of memes and internet sleuthing. Even major brands like Netflix got in on the viral opportunity.
Ryan McCormick, cofounder of Goldman McCormick, a public relations firm in New York, described it as a possible "blessing in disguise."
"The real silver lining is that if this company is doing something truly innovative and they're doing something truly groundbreaking, the likelihood of someone finding them has increased substantially," McCormick told BI.
"In the short term, they're embedded in controversy, but they're going to have people looking at them in a way they've never done before. I think that they'll probably come out OK."
In a statement on Friday, Astronomer said its leaders were "expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability" and that it had launched a "formal investigation" into the incident. It added that Byron had been placed on leave. On Saturday, it said the exec had resigned.
McCormick said Byron's departure would create some distance between the viral drama and the company.
"I think they took the high road. They did what needed to be done, which was probably a hard decision," McCormick said. "If I were an investor or employee at that company, I would feel pretty confident."
The company also used its Saturday statement to draw attention to its work.
"Before this week, we were known as a pioneer in the DataOps space," it said. "While awareness of our company may have changed overnight, our product and our work for our customers have not."
Mike Fahey, the founder and CEO of Fahey Communications, told BI that this showed the company was making "a concerted effort to redirect the narrative to where it is favorable."
"Astronomer is fighting back, working to position its offerings and overall customer experience as strong and reliable," he said, adding that the company "now has more eyes on it than ever before."
But the New York-based firm had initially remained silent as the social media storm gathered force and users flooded its channels with comments, which Fahey said was a mistake.
"The timing of the statement was notably delayed," he said of Astronomer's Friday announcement. "The absence of official communication created a void quickly filled by rumors, fake statements, and memes that spread widely on social media."
One viral post included a fake apology letter attributed to Byron that featured a lyric from a Coldplay song. It was widely assumed to be real and picked apart relentlessly online. Astronomer said Friday that Byron had not made any statement and that "reports saying otherwise are all incorrect."
Kristi Piehl, founder and CEO of Media Minefield, said the company made the same mistake as the pair on the "kiss cam."
"The way that they reacted online and on social media is exactly how the two people involved reacted. When the camera hit them, they hid," Piehl said.
"The first impression is so important. And the company allowed the first impression to be social media, the internet, and strangers."
Deirdre Latour, the founder of Rebellis Communications, also suggested the company had gotten it wrong with its initial silence.
"This is just the worst version of PR malpractice that you can see from a company," she said. "They are letting this terribly worded statement, blaming Coldplay and others, fester out in the marketplace."
She added that the situation was "easy to fix" and that an internal memo should have been sent to employees addressing the incident.