Last Friday, BP’s CEO Tony Hayward had the quote of the day: “The Gulf of Mexico is a very big ocean. The amount of volume of oil and dispersant we are putting into it is tiny in relation to the total water volume.” TINY? This “tiny” problem is a big problem for BP’s brand image. They keep getting deeper into a PR mess. First, they said the spill was not their fault, but did say it was their responsibility to clean it up. Then they said they will pay for all “legitimate” claims. They need to begin to listen to their PR firm, and not solely to their lawyers. I hope they’ve learned from the backlash of their “tiny” comments and will begin a public relations strategy that is straight-forward, transparent and honest. The brand will be judged by their response. I am waiting to see if BP can restore their image in the upcoming months, but I am only one tiny person in relation to the total volume of consumers in this world.

Read more on the impact of the spill.