Great online reputation management ensured a good mix
Here’s a straightforward case-study in good online reputation management. Last year, Innocent, the principled, value-driven smoothie company sold a stake to Coke – the all-American sugary drinks people.
Knowing that such an investment could turn off its brand devotees, Innocent did the smart thing. It got in there first and came clean about what it was doing and why.
It’s a disarming strategy. Far from being afraid of the backlash, Innocent intelligently anticipated it (just one of the payoffs of being able to see things from your customers’ point of view) and came clean about it. By doing so, they were able to put across a far stronger – and richer – case than would have been possible had they been trying to do it in reaction to an attack by outraged customers.
The real, hidden gem of a payoff from this situation is that by taking this action, Innocent have deepened their relationship with their customers, regardless of the issue. Their honesty and transparency is rewarded with trust and respect and that is priceless.
You’ll see that there was nothing hi-tech about what they did. They posted an open letter explaining their decision. They acknowledged peoples’ likely unease about the investment. They posted a series of YouTube videos addressing the main questions people might have about it. And they put a text transcript of each of the video responses on the same page.
Absolutely nothing you couldn’t do yourself. You just need to come from the right place and be honest.
Update: Since that initial investment last year, Coke has now bought a further 40% stake, increasing its shareholding to 58%. Despite this, Innocent’s 3 original founders insist that the deal doesn’t give any more rights to Coke as far as the Innocent brand is concerned.
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