McDonald’s Portugal apologizes for Halloween gaffe, Chick-fil-A flubs National Sandwich Day promo, and AA flight attendants speak out

Also: CMOs to broaden their roles in 2020, Georgia Tech’s social media viral hit, Molson Coors plans a rebranding and staff cuts, and more.

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Good morning, PR pros:

Chick-fil-A wanted to join in the fun for National Sandwich Day, so it sent an email to fans and followers promoting the occasions.

Oops: This year the day falls on a Sunday—and Chick-fil-A locations everywhere will be closed.

The company quickly apologized.

USA Today wrote:

Another email followed Thursday with the subject, “Well … this is awkward.”

“We recently sent an email that included a message about National Sandwich Day, which naturally we were very excited about,” the email reads. “We didn’t realize it falls on Sunday when we are closed. We apologize for the confusion and hope to see you soon (Monday-Saturday).”

When jumping on a national trend, make sure the campaign aligns with your organization’s values. No quick publicity hit is worth undoing the branding you’ve worked so hard to build.

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