Upheavals

Mindsets

Just a quick reminder to all those who are currently dismissing the whole concept of recession as a mindset divorced from reality that has been talked up by the media. So were the boom times. What’s your point?

POSTED: Friday, 16 May 2008

 

Never do nice work.

Yesterday after a Board meeting, Graham and I went for coffee, as we always do. He reminded me of a piece of work that we had both been involved with that had been deemed so outrageous at the time internally that a petition had been circulated to have the project stopped dead in its tracks.

I remember being thrilled at the time – thinking that if this could get people so worked up, when all the research told us that we were right, we must be onto something that was potentially sector-breaking.

The work went ahead anyway. And is still in place today. So either it was nowhere near as radical to the market as those inside the organisation thought it was. Or the people themselves got used to it over time. Or both. The fact is it has lasted the distance.

There’s a time to admit you’re wrong. And a time to see that the self-appointed devil’s advocates are. Either way, the old adage that it’s easier to say sorry than seek permission holds very, very true.

My take: never do “nice” work. It may be an easy sell but it’s a cheap thrill.

POSTED: Thursday, 15 May 2008

 

Can we talk?

Joan Rivers’ famous phrase has taken on new meaning with news that Facebook, My Space and Google are all making sharing noises in the social network space. Suddenly, proprietary social networking it seems is out the window – and everyone wants to get together.

In Google’s case, the company says that its new Friend Connect release (couldn’t they come up with a better name than that!) means any owner can add a piece of code to their website, and have social features ranging from members’ galleries to reviews up and running right away.

Meanwhile MySpace is looking to allow members to share some information with Yahoo, PhotoBucket, Twitter and eBay. And Facebook is offering its users the chance to take their personal profiles to any website that’s prepared to host them. If you’re a brand, this is a wake-up call. Experience is fast becoming a hygiene factor. Next thing to concentrate on: your talkability. Is your brand a conversation starter, a chat stopper, or a “Who?” generator.

Motto of the moment: The brand that can’t spread will soon be dead.

POSTED: Wednesday, 14 May 2008

 

What will you label them? Food for thought.

In the crowded, hyper-competitive world of FMCG, food brands live and die on their perceptions of trust and truth. After all these are products we feed to ourselves and our families. And with so many brands flogging the fact that they are fat free, sugar free, glutin free or contain added vitamins and minerals, we’ve been conditioned as consumers to include label-gazing as part of our purchase routines. Conditioned and convinced.

Hannah Samuel’s post about the new Ribena ads yesterday shows she’s not been won over by GlaxoSmithKline’s advertising campaign claiming that the whole Ribena range now contains 50% of an adult’s recommended dietary intake, and inviting us to go ahead and enjoy it once again. I agree with everything she says.

But it turns out that while Ribena may have been singled out for a big fine, they are certainly not the only company guilty of stretching the nutritional truth. In fact, a study undertaken for the Food Safety Authority by food scientist Dr Barbara Thomson would indicate that the majority of food labels should not be believed.

Dr Thomson measured the nutrient levels in 160 foods, and compared what they actually contained with what was claimed on the labels. Her finding – that nearly 58 per cent of samples did not meet the label claims. 15% had less than what the label claimed, 42.5% had more than what was claimed. That prompted Thomson to point out, "The labels don't necessarily reflect what's in the food".

The dilemma for the food industry is now this. What do you do if you’re one of the 42% that are accurate? How do you convince anyone that you really are what many people will now think you’re not?

POSTED: Tuesday, 13 May 2008

 

Cause and effect

Another one of the things we talked about in Sydney last week was the rising importance of CSR issues for investors – and the implication that environmental and social issues were becoming key considerations for companies looking to grow their investor brand.

Therefore, Mike and I both asserted, there was no point in hiding your opinions, good works or environmental measures from your stakeholders.

A taste of what’s coming can be judged by two motions being proposed at Google’s AGM this year. The first, from Amnesty International, asks the company to up its commitment to internet censorship, and seems specifically targeted at Google's Chinese language service Google.cn, which had to agree to government censorship rules in order to run in that country.

The second motion, proposed by investment manager Harrington Investments, proposes that a human rights committee be established. The point here is to signal that human rights are an issue for boards of directors, not just management.

It’s doubtful that either proposal will fly. But in many ways that’s not the point. The questions are being asked. And as Mike pointed out last week, when those questions are no longer coming from the easily-dismissed “fringes”, and instead are being directed at you by respected organisations, analysts, investment managers and fund managers, then you really do know they are now mainstream lines of enquiry.

When will you have answers?

POSTED: Monday, 12 May 2008