There is a lesson for all high profile corporations and organizations about adopting mottos, bywords and marketing slogans, thanks to the trevails of BP and Toyota this year.

While such slogans are often aspirational or directional. it’s clear that the rhetoric can far outreach reality, and the adage about the danger of getting too far ahead of the market is underscored. On the other hand, we all know how hard it is to always keep our promises, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try.

So I guess my advice to organizations in this regard is: be prepared for cynicism in the face of your aspirations and promises, and be prepared to live with it, or don’t make the promise or adopt the aspiration in the first place.

Following is from CNNmoney.com today.

BP loses $32 billion in value on spill

By Paul R. La Monica, editor at large May 4, 2010: 1:23 PM ET

The Buzz is now on Twitter! Follow me @LaMonicaBuzz

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Oil giant BP has a marketing slogan dubbed “Beyond Petroleum.” If only that were true. That ad campaign has to rank up there with Toyota’s “Moving Forward” motto as the most unintentionally hilarious of the year.

via The Buzz: BP may keep falling due to bad PR from oil spill – May. 4, 2010.