Retailers make decisions every day about the kinds of messages they want to communicate to the marketplace and the content of those messages. One controversial issue is whether personal — rather than strictly business — views should be expressed.

As Michael Hess writes for CBS MarketWatch: “The Chick-fil-A controversy brought to light the risks of a business taking a provocative public stand on a political, social, or religious issue. The privately-held fast food chain did so on a highly visible national scale, but the same thing happens every day — albeit much more quietly — at the small business level. Like any individual, the owner of a private company has the right to take any position or say pretty much anything he or she wants. But is it in the best interest of a business to put that right to the test?”

Click the image below to read 4 tips from Hess on where to draw the line.

istockphoto