A few weeks ago, my former employer, Gap, changed their logo from the iconic blue box with white writing, to a somewhat more modern, but awkward looking sans serif font with a floating blue box. Everyone had something to say about it, from Time magazine to the Huffington Post. Shortly after the logo release, the company’s Facebook page received a barrage of mostly negative comments from users. Thousands of pieces of electronic hate mail filled Facebook and Twitter. As a result, the company decided to pull the logo and ask Gap customers for suggestions.
Around the same time period, Sun Chips, another favorite of mine, announced that they were changing their chip bag back to the normal bag. Why? Consumers complained it was too loud. The new bag had been an eco-friendly bag, designed to biodegrade in just a few weeks. Although the new bag had been loud (I experienced it first-hand), I thought it was a pretty good step for the company. God only knows how long it takes for the original bag to decompose.
It’s great that these giant companies are taking the time to listen to consumers and respond, but at what point do they need to trust their own instincts? Yes, the new Gap logo was boring at best and yes, the chip bag was loud. But with the rate of information exchange, these would be relics of the past in just a month or two.
As marketers, how do we know when to follow customer feedback and when to trust our instincts? It’s important to remember that commenters are just a small subset of our overall audience. Not only that, but most people make noise when they don’t like something, so a disproportionate number of comments will be negative. As anyone who has ever worked for the Gap knows, the customer is not always right.
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