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Earlier this summer, Pepsi did something brands have been doing forever: It took a jab at its rival. In this case, that entailed some snarky satirizing of a popular Coke ad campaign. But it raised an eternal brand-battle question: Is it really a good idea to reference a rival so directly? Under the right circumstances, yes, according to the latest research on that subject in a recent Journal of Marketing Research paper, coauthored by Johannes Berendt, a professor of economics and communication at Hannover University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Germany. His fellow co-authors are Sebastian Uhrich, a professor of sports business administration at the German Sport University Cologne; Abhishek Borah, an associate professor of marketing at INSEAD (Institut Européen d’Administration des Affaires) in France; and Gavin Kilduff, a professor of management and organizations at NYU Stern. For starters, Berendt explains in an email, its important to distinguish between true rivalry and mere competition: Real rivals not only compete against each other in the marketplace, but they also have a special competitive relationship based on a shared history, he says. This includes McDonalds vs. Burger King, Mercedes vs. BMW, Apple vs. Samsung, and, of course, Coke vs. Pepsi. Researchers call it the rivalry reference effect. Consumers know that this is more than just regular competition, Berendt says. In their studies (which included analyses of 1.5 million social media posts from real brands, as well as controlled experiments involving fictional posts in various brand categories), Berendt and his fellow researchers found that a brand message referencing a rival increases consumer engagementand can even impact purchase intent. Openly contested rivalries have a special appeal, Berendt adds. Messages between rivals are processed differently than between ordinary competitors. (Remember the chicken sandwich wars a couple of years back? It made sense that Popeyes and Chick-fil-A would scrap on social media, but it felt off when Wendys butted in.) Pepsis recent shot at its longtime nemesiss Share a Coke campaign is a good example of a fresh salvo between true rivals. The Coke campaign, a Gen Z-focused iteration of a past effect, involves limited-edition packaging printed with individual names like David or Mia. Pepsi copied the style but smirked at the sentiment on packaging and billboards, replacing names with shout-outs to burgers, wings, and other Pepsi-friendly grub pairings. Share a Pepsi with, say, pizza, not some bro, goes one example, resonating with the sodas Food Deserves Pepsi pitch. That said, the specifics of any single critique may matter less than its context within a clearly established rivalry. Between rivals, consumers instantly connect new episodes to a familiar, ongoing narrative, Berendt says. This is because rivalry has two central elements of exciting stories: familiar antagonists, such as Coke and Pepsi, and a classic plot, the recurring conflict. For a consumer who has long since chosen sides, the message can be reinforcing, but Berendt says even neutral consumers seem to enjoy, or engage with, known rivalries. Of course, there are limits. While deploying brand rivalry messages can play to feelings of consumer-group distinctiveness, it might risk implying an overly aggressive brand personality. But thats generally not an issue if a rival is attacked in a clever/humorous way, Berendt says. A few years ago, for instance, Burger King took a jab at McDonalds with its Every King Needs a Clown campaign in Germany. Occasionally, a rival-focused message can even take the high road, as when Mercedes’ CEO retired and BMW launched a spot thanking him for years of inspiring competition. The ad got 8.2 million views and lots of positive comments on YouTube, Berendt points out, suggesting that this was a classy way to engage with the rival. Interestingly, the rivalry reference effect works whether its the category leader or the chief challenger calling out its brand enemy. The dynamic seems to be similar either way, playing to longtime loyalties or just widespread familiarity with a competitive history. Its true, Berendt concedes, that social media teasing can escalate if fans get involved and go after each otherparticularly in the context of sports. And sometimes a badly executed attack on a rival can just seem childish. But based on what Berendt and his colleagues found, theres not as much risk as you might think. If done in a clever way, most consumers seem to enjoy a good clash between rivals once in a while, he says.
Category:
E-Commerce
If we havent been there ourselves, weve seen it happen: A well-respected team member, bursting with potential, is promoted into a new leadership role. There are congratulations and smiles all around, and the new chief digs in, scheduling meetings and even offering sneak peeks at their 90-day plan. But as the good vibes fade, and everyone sets their eyes on the workKPIs, deliverables, an upcoming board meetingit soon becomes apparent that somethings wrong. The new leader may find their ideas and ways of working arent quite . . . landing. Have senior leaders moved the goalposts? Are peers expressing less enthusiasm? Is the team holding back? Whatever the disconnect, frustration builds. Anticipated quick wins become slow-rolling fails. Senior leadership begins to express concern, offering feedback that only increases the pressure. The new leader feels awkward and isolated, losing sleep and second-guessing every move. Soon, their job may even be at risk. A widespread problem This kind of failure would be tragic enough if it were uncommon. But its not. Some 46% of leadership transitions underperform, according to research and advisory firm CEB Inc. (Now owned by Gartner Inc.) The stats are even worse for the C-Suite. New CEOs have a failure rate as high as 50%, according to McKinsey, and 90% of them wish they had handled their transition differently. According to McKinsey, a failed leadership transition can cost the company more than two times the executive’s annual compensation. But of course the cost of ripple effects from the failurelower productivity, higher turnover across the team, and missed opportunities can cost even more. All told, failed executive transitions are one of the most underrecognized systemic risks facing organizations today. So much of a companys momentum depends on getting transitions rightpromoting top performers, replicating success across departments, expanding the leadership bench. A leadership failures impact ripples outward, causing direct reports to hunker down, peers to pull back, and cultural damage to deepen. Leaders across the organization begin to doubt its ability to manage change. Growth itself can stall. But organizations can inoculate themselves against this negative feedback loopand accelerate the success of their new leadersby rethinking how they support transitions. Here are four against the grain rules that can help a new leader take root and thrive. 1. QUICK WINS, YES; HERO MODE, NO New leaders often arrive eager to prove themselvesscanning for early wins they can capture. But that motivation can come across as self-serving and raise a red flag for the rest of the team. Early moves should build trust: showing the leader is focused on enabling the team, not spotlighting their own capabilities. The organization can play a critical role here. The new execs own leader should define what success looks likesteering them away from hero moves and toward shared goals, with an emphasis on team visibility, engagement, and inclusion. This matters even more when the new leader is promoted from within. Others may have wanted the role or expected a different outcome. The new leader must address that dynamic directly, affirming each team members value. But its the organizations job to reinforce early and often that the teams success is the leaders success. Thats corporate culture at its best. 2. WHAT GOT YOU HERE WONT GET YOU THERE Most new leaders were promoted because they excelled in a previous role. But that success was likely built on different strengths: technical skill, individual output, or tactical problem-solving. These arent the skills needed to create and communicate a vision and strategy, lead across functions, and navigate complexity. Internal promotions must make a clean break from their old roles or risk blurring the focus on the most important thingwhats next. Without this increased self-awareness, its natural to fall back on whats familiar, especially as the pressure rises. Instead of stepping up to a broader mandate, newly elevated senior leaders tend to double down on execution. It may feel safe, but it stunts growth and signals a lack of readiness. Even worse, the new leader may have blind spots about their own skills and inclinations. Getting 360-degree feedback, even if informal (and if possible, additional psychometric data) is critical to building self-awareness. This is where a neutral confidante, a coach, or even a practice of asking others for their candid feedback, can be invaluable. 3. THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE POLITICAL Theres a taboo in most organizations about gossiping to a new boss or appearing to be highly political. But avoiding all such discussion can in fact be dangerous. New leadersespecially external hiresoften walk in blind to personality landmines, power dynamics, and team history. Instead, they need unvarnished insight into who theyll be working with: the stakeholders who are aligned and the ones who clash; the teams that collaborate and synergize; and those that dont. They need clarity on how things get done. Imagine how much more effective you could be in a new role if someone detailed all the team members and their relationshipsalmost like a pregame scouting report analyzing each players mental and physical strengths and vulnerabilities, and the plays they like to run when a games on the line. It would instantly improve your ability to collaborate and record successes. Even better if it will give you insight into how your own work style fits in. Consider a product leader recruited from a fast-moving startup into a legacy organization. In one version of his story, his trademark urgency, focus, and accountabilityincluding take-no-prisoners KPI reviewsalienates peers and they quietly sideline him. In another scenario, hes warned that his bulldog style could backfire, thanks to a hiring manager who was transparent about personalities and fit. Its the organizations jobideally the new bosss bossto reveal this before Day One and keep the conversation going. Every workplace has its unique culture, comprising people, politics, and pressure points. If those arent surfaced early, the new leader struggles to find their way, which at best delays success and in too many instances derails it completely. 4. THERES NO SUCH THING AS MAGIC New leaders are often handed a mandatesometimes clear, more often vague. Theyre expected to bring change and energy, and turn things around. But rarely do they get clarity on pacing and priorities, resourcing, and success measures. Who are their internal customers anyway, and what are their requirements? Consider a COO, hired into a high-growth company with a mandate to increase operational efficiencies. In one version of the story, she immediately overhauls the supply chain strategy and upgrades technologyonly to clash with a CEO whos laser-focused on short-term KPIs. In another version, she seeks clarity on priorities up front, aligns her approach to what the CEO needs to make quarterly numbers, and executes a plan that builds lasting momentum. Without early, specific alignment to stakeholder expectations, a new leader is left uncertain about the playbook, the true priorities, and how aggressively to move forward. Worse, they may act with confidence, but in the wrong directionaiming all their energy at an objective no one else shares. Dont assume talent plus title equals traction. Hiring or promoting the right person and letting the magic happen isnt a strategy. THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF GROWTH Successful leadership transitions are essential to a companys growth in the same way that new routers are essential to an expanding telecommunications network. Scaling up requires that each connection works. When they dont, the existing structure becomes overburdened, everything slows down, and the limits to growth become painfully clear. All leadership transitions bear risk. Most of the risks are identifiable and predictable, and afford opportunities to apply strategies that mitigate them. Taking deliberate steps to make transitions go well wont eliminate that risk, but it will shift the odds in our favor. The only thing more risky than changes in leadership is leaving leaders to face them alone.
Category:
E-Commerce
One hundred miles off the coast of New York City, there is an underwater canyon teeming with marine life. Seabirds soar overhead as whales, sharks, dolphins, sea turtles, and fish gather around Hudson Canyon. With so many species calling the canyon home, the Wildlife Conservation Society wants Hudson Canyon to be designated a National Marine Sanctuary. The designation, awarded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, would protect the ecologically diverse area from companies hoping to mine the seabed for oil, gas, and minerals. Its not just the endangered species WCS is hoping to save from disruptive and dangerous miningit also wants to save the fish you eat for dinner. With a striking new campaign created by the advertising agency McKinney, WCS is calling on seafood lovers to sign its petition urging NOAA to protect Hudson Canyon, home to the creatures that stock seafood markets in New York City and beyond. [Image: courtesy Hudson Canyon] Were protecting the species out there, were protecting their health, but were also protecting the economic viability of our waters, says Christine Osekoski, executive director of the Wildlife Conservation Society. To help communicate the importance of Hudson Canyon to the people who enjoy the spoils of commercial fishing there, McKinney took an analog-first approach to the campaign. They printed the petition right onto the butcher paper that seafood markets wrap around the fish they sell. [Image: courtesy Hudson Canyon] What better way to get the actual cause, actual information, and actual petition into peoples hands . . . than at the moment you are consuming the very thing that is being threatened? asks Omid Amidi, chief creative officer at McKinney. To create an eye-catching design on the butcher paper, McKinneys team members used a Japanese printing technique called gyotaku, brushing the types of animals found in the Hudson Canyon with blue ink and pressing them onto paper. The process yields nearly perfect impressions of the very same creatures the campaign is trying to saveblack sea bass, scallops, and crabs, for example. [Image: courtesy Hudson Canyon] The fish prints are paired with maps of the Hudson Canyon, copies of the petition text, and QR codes to sign it. These elements, all in blue, are overlaid with blocky red letters reading Quit Floundering, Then Save the Canyon and Save the Scallops, Then Sear Them, among other sayings. The simple layouts and contrasting blue and red ink are meant to evoke the advertising and storefront design choices of old New York fish markets. The end product is a far cry from the plain brown butcher paper that markets traditionally use to wrap seafood. [Image: courtesy Hudson Canyon] The design itself is just meant to stop you in your tracks, Amidi says. Even though its a light piece of paper, it has the weight of all the work and all the care we put into it. Adding to the campaign, McKinney designed window clings and counter cards for participating markets, as well as created signage displayed at the New York Aquarium and online videos featuring local fishmongers supporting the effort. [Image: courtesy Hudson Canyon] The campaign launched June 9, the day after the United Nations World Oceans Day. Since then, participating seafood markets in the New York City area have wrapped their fish in WCSs petition and stirred up support mong customers. Six markets are participating in the campaign: Mt. Kisco Seafood, Greenpoint Fish and Lobster, Metro Seafood, Mermaids Garden Sustainable Seafood, Martys Gourmet Seafood, and Lobster Place at Chelsea Markets. We definitely have a crew of loyal customers who are into sustainability, says David Seigal, culinary director at Lobster Place at Chelsea Markets. But we also have a lot of customers who want to know where their food is coming from, and I think those are the people who are most interested in this. Some participating fish markets are already asking for more shipments of the paper, Osekoski says, as more people see the design and sign the petition. This show of support is an important step in the process toward Hudson Canyon being designated a National Marine Sanctuary. Soon, NOAA will release its draft of the designation documents and solicit comments from the public before ultimately choosing whether to make the area a sanctuary. By the end of the public comment period, WCS hopes its petition will have 25,000 signatoriesand the nonprofit is already one-third of the way there. For Seigal, also an avid fisherman who frequently travels to the Hudson Canyon, protecting the area is a cause especially close to his heart. Were in business with Mother Nature, when it comes down to it, he says. Any threat to Mother Nature is a threat to, at a minimum, our business, but really to our existence as a human race.
Category:
E-Commerce
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