After a long Summer pause, and lots of work starting up the new Service-Design course we are running together with the Oslo Business School this fall, I thought I just had to point you to this news item at the BBC (link).
Whole Foods, is a company that has 270 stores in North America and the UK, sells organic vegetables and I would guess has a high proportion of Obama supporters. The Chief Executive, John Mackey, has managed to create a huge storm, by strongly opposing Obamas suggested health care reform and likening it to a form for socialism that uses up everybody elses money until there is none left (a Margaret Thatcher quote).
This seems a very  unfortunate thing to do, and predictably, it  was like waving a red rag to a bull. Not only are people travelling long distances to picket the Whole Foods Market, the angry customers are also using social networks to spread the message. The forum on the whole foods website related to the issue now has 17074 posts, a long distance from next place ‘cooking tips and advice’ with 303 posts.
I think this is interesting from two perspectives. Firstly, it reminds me that behaviours are a major touch-point for a service brand. The behaviours of everyone in the organisation, from the daily contact with people in the shop, to the behaviour of the chief executive. I have been discussing touch-points with Birgitta Cappelen at AHO a lot recently. We have been comparing the touch-point approach that Service Design takes to the Visual Identity approach that many branding consultants use. The brand and touch-point wheel that is commonly used (originally described by Dunn and Davis), does not include behaviours (or networks), and to our minds, this is a major omission.
The brand touchpoint wheel takes a product rather than service view (this image fromVoss + Zomerdijk 07)Â
The second thing relates to basic branding, or in the AT-ONE case, the Offering. Whole Foods use a large dose of emotional branding in their offering, appealing to peoples desires to care for the planet, care for others and care for their future. In the hierarchy of branding, appealing to idealistic beliefs, such that customers feel an alignment, is the strongest type of branding that one can use. This gives strong loyalty and a high willingness to visibly support the brand. However, its a two-edged sword, since violating this trust can turn people strongly against a brand, due to feelings of betrayal.
Two major things, that could have been foreseen. I think that John Mackey has a lot of explaining to do, and that the damage that he has done to the Whole Foods brand will be major. Understanding customers and customer behaviour in relation to idealistic brands has to be paramount.