In a world where brands compete for a slice of the consumer’s ever-shrinking attention span, some cross the line between bold and blundering. YesMadam, a beauty tech platform that gained visibility after its Shark Tank India appearance, recently turned heads—but for all the wrong reasons. What started as an eyebrow-raising LinkedIn post escalated into a public relations disaster, but the company will have to do some damage control. “There’s a razor-thin line between iconic work and reckless work. Iconic work transforms culture, ignites indispensable conversations, and earns its place in history for all the right reasons. Reckless work, on the other hand, aims for the same but misses the mark—failing to read the room and making history for all the wrong reasons. YesMadam’s stunt was the latter: absolutely reckless! Sure, it sparked an uproar, but at what cost?” Shubham Gune, an advertising expert and founder, Hinglish, told BrandWagon Online.
It all began with an alleged email shared by a copywriter from YesMadam, revealing that the company conducted a survey on workplace stress. According to the post, nearly 50% of employees reported feeling stressed, prompting the company to fire those very employees—a response that triggered outrage across social media.
The post went viral almost immediately, racking up millions of views and sparking widespread condemnation. Industry leaders weighed in, calling out the absurdity and insensitivity of such a policy. Mainstream media picked up the story, fueling the outrage further. Twitter threads, LinkedIn rants, and Instagram reels painted YesMadam as a cautionary tale of toxic workplace practices. But just as the storm reached fever pitch, YesMadam dropped a bombshell: it was all a marketing gimmick.
“If there’s one person YesMadam should fire immediately, it’s the PR professional who approved the dumbest campaign of the year. In today’s age of social media and virality, too many marketers are taking the ‘any publicity is good publicity’ mantra way too seriously,” Dheeraj Jain, director, ReGraduate, said.
This campaign by the company looks like a desperate bid to garner attention. While the company’s revenue from operations rose 25.8% to Rs 27.04 crore in FY23 from Rs 21.48 crore in FY22, as per regulatory filings assessed by Tofler, it reported a net loss of Rs 63.62 lakh in FY23 from a net profit of Rs 27.30 lakh in FY22.
Queries sent to YesMadam remained unanswered till the time of publishing this story.
The anatomy of a PR blunder
The company’s clarification, issued earlier this morning, claimed the controversial post was a deliberate move to grab attention. Their reasoning? A bid to stand out in a cluttered market and launch their “stress relief” massage services. But the stunt, which relied on shock value, raises a fundamental question: how far is too far in the quest for virality?
When BrandWagon Online reached out to YesMadam’s PR agency, Value360 Communications, even they were unaware of the marketing plan. It appears that the entire stunt was orchestrated solely by the brand, without the involvement of the PR agency. “The recent marketing campaign by YesMadam has sparked widespread discussion on social media, drawing a range of opinions. While we recognise that the campaign was developed with a positive intention of prioritising employee well-being, this was a standalone decision taken by YesMadam’s internal team. Value 360 Communications was neither consulted nor involved in the strategic planning or execution of this particular campaign,” a Value360 Communications spokesperson said.
YesMadam isn’t the first brand to blur ethical lines for publicity, but this episode feels particularly tone-deaf. Industry experts opine that workplace stress is a genuine issue that impacts millions, and the idea of penalising employees for their mental health struck a nerve. By trivialising this sensitive topic, YesMadam managed to alienate both its target audience and potential customers.
“Any gimmick in today’s digital era, where the world is an open place, empathy should be given priority. Empethatic conversations not only help in brand building but also create an instant connection with its TG. While curating comms strategies brands should navigate cautiously because it can make or break the brand. It’s like walking steadily on thin ice. Sometimes internal teams may not be objective enough about their ideas that’s why it’s important to share any pr idea with your agency partner before executing it. Agencies being external parties will be able to give more objective feedback and sound advice,” Akshat Jain, VP, Weber Shandwick, said.
A case study in misjudgment
Bad marketing isn’t new, but it’s rare to see a campaign that unites so many people in outrage. YesMadam’s stunt is a textbook example of how not to use controversy in branding. The move lacked foresight and empathy, key ingredients in resonating with modern consumers. “The YesMadam marketing gimmick is precisely what we will get if we continue celebrating cheap marketing stunts like Fake Celeb Deaths and such scams. Tasteless and tone-deaf – especially brutal at a time when the job market isn’t at its best. If your response is, ‘Hey, it got people talking’ – please don’t. You are part of the problem,” Nikhil Narayan, head of creative, Zlade, said.
Here are a few critical observations:
Insensitive Timing: In an era when workplace wellness and mental health are at the forefront of public discourse, joking about firing stressed employees was never going to land well.
Miscalculated Backlash: The company underestimated how quickly and intensely people would react. What they likely hoped would be a clever stunt turned into a full-blown PR nightmare.
Lack of Authenticity: Audiences today value authenticity more than ever. The revelation that the post was a marketing gimmick only reinforced perceptions of YesMadam as a brand willing to manipulate serious issues for attention and speaks volumes about the leadership team’s thought process.
Lessons for the industry
If there’s one takeaway from YesMadam’s misadventure, it’s this: marketing gimmicks can backfire spectacularly when they lack sensitivity and strategy. As per industry experts- here are a few lessons other brands can learn:
Know Your Audience: Understand the issues your audience cares about and avoid trivialising them.
Think Long-Term: Viral moments fade, but a damaged reputation can linger for years.
Stay Authentic: Consumers can see through gimmicks. Build campaigns that resonate on a deeper level.
Measure the Risks: Before launching a bold campaign, consider the worst-case scenario and whether your brand can handle the fallout.
Will YesMadam recover?
Only time will tell whether YesMadam can bounce back from this debacle. For now, it’s clear they’ve got a lot of trust to rebuild—not just with their employees but with their audience at large. The Internet has a long memory, and while today’s outrage may eventually subside, the episode will remain a cautionary tale for brands desperate to be the talk of the town.