P&Gs Immersion
In a recent Fortune article, Jeff Colvin interviewed Proctor and Gamble’s CMO Jim Stengel. P&G has done a nice job in taking the lead with anthropological research, ethnography, new media implementation, and seeking network effects with regard to their product marketing efforts. Within the article, Stengel speaks on communicating with customers and understands the new story telling foundation that technology creates relating to the consumer voice surrounding products. It reminds me of a quote from Sarah Fay, President of Isobar U.S. - in Advertising Age, February 2007.
“Brands that will win will be those whose consumers tell the best stories to each other rather than brands that tell the best story to their consumer.”
The following quote from Stengel in the Fortune article sounds like something right out of Wikinomics and the science of sharing.
“Q: You are in a great position to evaluate consumer trends. What is the most important thing you are seeing?
A: The biggest thing going on with U.S. consumers is that they want to trust something. They want to be understood, they want to be respected, they want to be listened to. They don’t want to be talked to. It’s trust in the largest sense of the word. People really do care what’s behind the brand, what’s behind the business. They care about the values of a brand and the values of a company. We can never forget that. We can never be complacent about that.
This is an enormous phenomenon, enabled by technology in many ways. Businesses and brands that are breaking records are those that inspire trust and affection and loyalty by being authentic, by not being arrogant, and by being empathetic to those they serve.”
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Interesting post