While watching various Ted Talks videos online the other day I stumbled upon a group of videos that I think really define what makes a company successful and sets them apart from the competition. After viewing these videos, in my opinion, there are three important components to any successful business, especially from a public relations standpoint. First, is storytelling, which is sort of the “all encompassing” aspect that every company must incorporate to gain and maintain brand loyalty and brand recognition. Second is fear, instead of running from our fears we should really dissect our fears and understand why we are having them and what they mean. Lastly, and very importantly, why the company does what they do.
A company in Grand Rapids that I follow puts great emphasis on incorporating storytelling into what they do. They don’t consider themselves employees, they call themselves storytellers. This is a very important distinction in my opinion. According to Andrew Stanton, in his Ted Talk video, “The clues to a great story,” he describes the importance of effectively telling a story. Stanton states, “ The storyteller has to make the audience care.” So I got to thinking about the company in Grand Rapids and how this one rule can apply to a company such as that. The success of any brand, from a public relations standpoint, is making the consumer care. Impressing them in such a way that persuades them to choose our company versus the competition. We do this through storytelling. It is not just single, intermittent, messages, events, or campaigns. It is through a continuous story of who we are and why you should support us. If you cannot affectively tell a story to the consumer, you cannot distinguish yourself from the competition and therefor you will ultimately lose their business. Along with this idea, it is not smart to tell one single story. As stated above, one single story can and will often define a company, which can be a wonderful thing or, in most cases, something that will ultimately kill your business. The trick to being successful storytellers is to make sure you have a consistent message among different, yet connected stories. Sounds easy right?
This can cause a lot of fear among companies, especially those who handle public relations, marketing, advertising, etc. What messages should we post? Is this too edgy? Will this upset too many people? In 2012, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz had a tough decision to make and I can only imagine the fear he and his co-workers felt during this decision. One thing that Starbucks prides itself on is supporting diversity in all forms. So it was no surprise when it came out that Starbucks, as a company, supported same-sex marriage and supported the Washington state bill to legalize same-sex marriage. This of course ruffled some feathers and caused an investor to have a few words with Schultz. According to CNN Money, the “investor complained that the company’s support was eroding its bottom line.” The investor was not wrong that some people would stop supporting the company, and in March of that same year the National Organization for Marriage instituted a “Dump Starbucks” boycott, which is said to have included some tens of thousands of people. Those numbers alone have to cause some sort of fear to arise in anyone. From a business angle, this is not the type of thing you want to see happen to your company. Despite this, Schultz stated, “If you feel respectfully that you can get a higher return than the 38% you got last year, it’s a free country. You could sell your shares at Starbucks and buy shares in other companies.” I can only imagine the thoughts going through Schultz’s mind when making the decision to openly support same-sex marriage on Starbucks’ behalf. I am sure there was fear in his mind and he probably ran through all the worst-case scenarios of what something like this could do to his company. What sets him apart is what he did with that fear. Instead of running from it, he dissected it and really took the time to understand what his fear meant for him and the company. The article goes on to state that “Starbucks stock and dividends rose 7.6% from March 2012 to March 2013. According to Karen Thompson Walker in her Ted Talk video, “What fear can teach us”, “the brands that aren’t afraid to push the envelope, embrace unique and innovative marketing techniques, and actively respond to customers’ praise and criticism are the brands that have succeeded.”
Lastly, is explaining “why” your company does what they do. I am not referring to making a profit, that is a result. What is your purpose, what is your cause, why do you do what you do? Every single company knows what they do. That part is easy and that is what most companies use as a marketing strategy. Their marketing message usually states something to the effect of “This is what we do, buy our product.” This also proves to be very unsuccessful. Some companies know how they do what they do. Very few companies know “why” they do what they do. A good example of this, described by Simon Sinek, in his Ted Talk, “Start with Why” is Apple. According to Sinek, “ If Apple were like everyone else, a marketing message from them might sound like this. We make great computers, they are beautifully designed, simple to use, and user friendly. Want to buy one?” However, Apple leads with “why” and creates an inspired, captivating message that draws the consumer in and ultimately persuades the consumer to feel comfortable in purchasing their products. Sinek describes how Apple actually communicates, “Everything we do we believe in challenging the status quo, we believe in thinking differently. The way we challenge the status quo is by making our products beautifully designed, simple to use, and user friendly. We just happen to make great computers, want to buy one?” This message and the success of Apple prove that people don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.
References:
http://www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/5_TED_talks_all_brand_storytellers_must_watch_13959.aspx
http://money.cnn.com/2013/03/26/news/companies/starbucks-gay-marriage/
Betsy Louise Garbe 