• The Retail Roundup: COVID-19 Edition – Take 2

    The Retail Roundup: COVID-19 Edition – Take 2

    Coronavirus continues to accelerate dramatic changes across the retail industry, and it’s hard to imagine what the sector will be like for businesses and shoppers in a post-pandemic world. According to a new report from market research company Euromonitor, U.S. retail sales could be down by an estimated 6.5% this year. For comparison, retail sales were down just 2.2% in 2009, the year the Great Recession ended.

    While many factors could alter the course for retailers, including another outbreak or shoppers’ willingness to return to stores, current headlines affirm that the pandemic will have long-lasting and likely permanent impacts on customer behavior and the retail landscape. Here are a few key themes we’ve seen being covered across publications:

    Retail Divide 

    Apparel retailers and department store operators continue to report on operating losses and declining profits, with many announcing temporary and permanent layoffs in an effort to cut costs during this time. Neiman Marcus, J.Crew, Stage Stores and J.C. Penney have already filed for bankruptcy during the crisis. And just last week, Macy’s announced forecasts of up to a $1 billion quarterly loss while Kohl’s net sales tanked 43.5% during the first quarter due to lockdowns. 

    E-commerce players and essential-item retailers that stayed open throughout the quarantine – such as Target, Walmart and Home Depot – saw sales surge in the last quarter as shoppers stocked up on household goods. To keep up with demand and retain their workforce, both Target and Walmart have stated they plan to continue offering wage increases for workers as a result of the pandemic.

    As consumers continue to engage in “relief” spending – some retailers will continue to see unprecedented demand, while others look to stay afloat. 

    Relevant Articles:

    “Dark” Stores + Fulfillment Strategies 

    The surge in online shopping has caused retailers to rethink the way they use their store space. To manage the massive increase in online orders and provide faster deliveries, many are turning their shuttered brick-and-mortar locations into “dark stores” that moonlight as fulfillment centers. Because staff do not have to work cash registers or help customers, it makes it much easier for the retailer to rapidly fulfill online orders.

    This has become particularly common in the grocery industry amid record demand for online orders, with Whole Foods opening a total of six dark stores, and chains like Giant Eagle, Kroger and Stop & Shop leveraging the strategy to fulfill delivery and pickup orders. 

    Walmart and Target, as well as fashion brands, have converted stores into fulfillment centers, too. Bed Bath & Beyond recently announced plans to transition 25% of its stores into regional fulfillment centers, and Gap has been fulfilling and shipping online orders from 1,000 locations. 

    Gap, REI, as well as other clothing chains, have started to reopen these stores for business by offering curbside pickup to trim down transportation costs and further boost fulfillment capabilities. 

    Relevant Articles:

    Re-opening of Stores

    As US states continue to loosen restrictions on stay-at-home orders, retailers are announcing their plans for the slow re-opening of store locations and preventative steps taken to ensure shopper and worker safety. People want to feel safe, get their lives back to normal, and start shopping again, but as they return to stores, they will notice many changes.

    TJX announced it “expects” customers to wear facial coverings while shopping, and American Eagle announced it will provide hand sanitizer for customers and institute employee temperature checks. Meanwhile, Ulta is banning any product sampling.

    Aside from new sanitation practices, some retailers, such as Nordstrom and Macy’s, will temporarily close some fitting rooms and quarantine items that have been tried on before returning them to the sales floor.

    Relevant Articles:

    What headlines stood out to you this month? We will continue to closely monitor the media and market sentiment amidst the COVID-19 crisis. Send me an email if you’d like to receive our weekly summary and insights.

    Kate Duchaney

    , ,

  • The Three Retail Influencers You Should Connect with in NYC (and How to Do It!)

    The Three Retail Influencers You Should Connect with in NYC (and How to Do It!)

    The retail industry is undergoing a major evolution. Online shopping continues to grow in popularity, complacent retailers continue to shut their doors and Amazon continues to redefine consumer expectations across the board.

    But retailers aren’t the only ones undergoing radical change. The reporters who cover these trends are, too. Newsrooms are shrinking, reporters cover more beats or single beats for shorter periods of time, and social media is transforming the way that publications break stories and receive tips from PR pros like me and you.

    With the holidays quickly approaching and NRF 2020 on the horizon, there’s a great chance your retail client’s CEO or subject matter expert will take a trip to the Big Apple in the next three months. And although NYC is home to many retail influencers, they’re all getting bombarded with the same pitches to meet up with so and so at XYZ company to discuss the next big thing in retail. To capitalize on your trip, you’ll need to be creative in your media outreach – or risk falling to the bottom of your favorite reporter’s inbox.

    For instance, every journalist has different preferences for how they work with PR pros. Some like all the details upfront, some like a 50-word blurb. Some like attachments included, some will close an email if there’s as much as a link – let alone a full press release. These elements are largely out of your control, unless they’ve published their preferences online or you have a personal relationship. What you can focus on is who you’re reaching out to and the substance of your pitch.

    Here are three retail influencers you should connect with while you’re in town and the best ways to reach them:

    Lauren Thomas, retail reporter at CNBC

    Twitter handle: @laurenthomas

    Lauren is a reporter for CNBC based in New York where she covers retail and its retail real estate. She joined in 2017 after graduating from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and has quickly made a name for herself. A power user of social media, she was named the No. 1 retail voice on LinkedIn in 2018. 

    Best ways to work with her:

    • Organically engage with her outside of your email pitch; try “liking” her Tweets or commenting on her LinkedIn posts with a unique perspective. This isn’t the place for an unsolicited pitch but can be a good relationship builder.
    • Offer her unique data she can’t find anywhere else; this can be in the form of a survey or propriety data from your company’s platform. Lauren is notorious for using company-owned data, especially around the holidays.

    Melissa Fares, retail reporter at Reuters

    Twitter handle: @faresmelissa

    Melissa covers the world of retail, fashion and shopping. While Melissa has been with Reuters for over four years, she recently took on the retail beat starting in March 2018. Before Reuters, she attended Columbia Journalism School.

    Best ways to work with her:

    Similar to most reporters, Melissa is always interested in hearing from retailers – not only the well-known retailers, but also emerging retailers with an interesting, relevant and global story to tell.  Customer requests are never easy, so if they’re not open to being quoted publicly, try inviting Melissa to attend a customer-driven networking event. Especially around events like NRF, when many retailers are in one place, this can be a low-pressure way to introduce media to your retail customers.

    Not all reporters like getting phone calls from PR people, but Melissa is one of the few that is open to it. Whether it’s an email or a phone call, she wants to be connected with people who can help her form a meaningful story that hasn’t been told.

    Tonya Garcia, news editor and reporter at MarketWatch

    Twitter handle: @tgarcianyc

    Tonya Garcia is a MarketWatch reporter covering retail and consumer-oriented companies. She is one of the best in the business at cranking out the latest news before anyone else and regularly publishes 5+ articles per day. 

    Best ways to work with her:

    • Speed is of the essence. Tonya regularly accepts issues response commentary, but you need to work on her deadlines, which come and go quicker than most.
    • Like Lauren, Tonya is also a power user of social media. If you respond to her Tweets with unique insights, she’ll be likely to recognize your name when it comes through her inbox. One warning though: Your GIF game will never match hers. 

    The retail media landscape is constantly changing and it’s no longer enough to engage reporters with a simple email or phone call. If you want to get your client on their radar this holiday season or during an upcoming trip to NYC, consider starting the conversation on social. While not all reporters are open to this kind of interaction, the above reporters welcome it. If done right, it can be the first step to a mutually-beneficial relationship.

    Andrew Petro

    , , , , ,

  • Q+A with Forbes Contributor Richard Kestenbaum

    Q+A with Forbes Contributor Richard Kestenbaum

    Forbes retail columnist: “Retail is not collapsing – retail is growing”

    Q&A with expert contributor explores the future of commerce, what it’s like to be on the receiving end of PR pitches

     We recently caught up with Forbes contributor Richard Kestenbaum, who covers retail, fashion, consumer behavior and consumer products. Kestenbaum doubles as a co-founder and partner at Triangle Capital, where he’s been doing mergers and acquisitions, and capital raises, for consumer-facing companies for more than 35 years. He is based in NY.

    /></p> <p><strong>How do you decide what to write about for your column? What are your favorite retail and consumer trends to write about?</strong></p> <p>I don’t have a specific process. If I find something interesting, then I’ll decide to write about it. I speak with approximately six to 10 CEOs each day. When you do that, patterns begin to emerge and you take note of these individuals touching on similar things and occurrences. These types of situations are informative to me and assist in my comprehension of what actions companies need to take in order to develop their true value in the mergers and acquisitions business. Additionally, I go to conferences and receive reports that help me see what people are doing and what they’re thinking, and these function as illustrations that ultimately serve to confirm my presumptions. They’re demonstrative of the aforementioned trends and really aid in putting the whole thing together. So, when I see a pattern, I will jot it down on my calendar, “is this a trend and is this worth writing about?” If it keeps coming back to me, then the answer is “yes.”</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Are there particular conferences, reports or publications that you really pay attention to?</strong></p> <p>I read WWD every day. I don’t necessarily see trends there, but it helps me with the news, and the news reflects the trends that are already out there. I also walk stores and browse online. But mostly, I speak to CEOs and ask them what they’re doing, what they worry about and where they see their business going.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>What about analyst reports? Do you follow Forrester or RSR Research?</strong></p> <p>The reports that I’ve covered are reports that people like you have sent me, that are prepared by their clients. There are a number of these, and most don’t get me excited. Every now and again they do, and they also serve to reveal patterns. The reports that are the most interesting are the ones that center around real consumer data concerning behavior that’s informative and give insight into what consumers will do next that’s not immediately apparent.</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>What’s not informative? </strong></p> <p>Sometimes people write reports just for the sake of writing reports and they’re not informative. For example, I have received reports where there have been real studies done on whether consumers are motivated by discounts. You know, call me stupid, but I don’t think I need a report to tell me that consumers are motivated by discounts. I was given another report that showed that email marketing is effective. That’s not news, and it isn’t a trend. Reports such as those are a waste of both money and time.</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>All PR people are peddling their experts. What kind of expertise gets your attention? What PR/interview mistakes do these “experts” make?</strong></p> <p>I get more pitches for experts than I need, so, unfortunately, I can’t engage with all of these people. What isn’t useful to me, and what I never want to find myself using, is pre-canned quotes. Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like if the quote is canned – what value am I adding as a blogger? Perhaps I haven’t been doing this long enough, but it seems like I ought to be getting quotes that are original or break new ground. If a quote is mass-mailed to writers and is usable to me, then I feel as if I’m doing something wrong.</p> <p>Another mistake that PR people tend to make is that they write me about doing another story about something I have already written. It always reminds me of when you shop on the web and you buy something like an airline ticket, and then for the next week they’re trying to sell you the same airline ticket. I don’t want to write about something that I’ve recently written about.</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>How many pitches do you receive in a day/week, and how many of them are any good?</strong></p> <p>I don’t write that much. I’ll write three or four times a month, and if I am getting five to 10 a day, there’s are only a small percentage that I can really use. I don’t have room in my head to go through the virtues or weaknesses of each of those pitches. I’ll evaluate them quickly and am always generally looking for a reason to say yes or no.</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>Are the pitches generally too long?</strong></p> <p>No. We’re all familiar with going through emails and finding the essence of it.</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>As PR people, we run into a lot of contributors who wear two hats in business and journalism. That business acumen certainly serves them – and their readers – well, and it’s understandable that they’re using their writing to build their own brand awareness. However, we’re seeing a lot of blurred lines between pay-for-play coverage with these analysts and consultants, and earned media. You seem to straddle your two ventures quite well, upholding traditional journalistic ethics. How do you separate the two? </strong></p> <p>Yes, people have offered me money, travel, and other crazy things. But if you are an investment banker doing M&A, you’re in a business that is fraught with conflict every day. If you have a client, your job is to serve that client’s interests. It is very easy to do things that are not in their best interests without your client ever knowing. But if you want to have a successful career and sleep well at night, you must always protect the interests of your client. So, from the onset of my own career, I realized that you have to understand what the goal is and keep your eye on it, and not let yourself get distracted by conflicts that will, in the long run, undermine your own objectives and the way you want to live your life. I don’t find that particularly difficult to do in journalism because it’s very much within my control. I don’t take things for what I write and I’m not interested in writing puff pieces. All my compensation for my writing comes from Forbes. I am interested in writing articles that I believe are simultaneously interesting and will help us develop and enhance our reputation as thought leaders. Nothing is worth more to me than that, nothing has more value to me than my reputation and I’m not going to let myself get distracted by any other kind of offer.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>As an investment banker, how do you weigh PR and media coverage when you’re looking at a company’s potential? Are PR and marketing important areas to invest in, particularly as companies seek new funding or look to be acquired?</strong></p> <p>We don’t typically do public deals, so PR and our clients’ interests are typically in conflict. If we’re engaged to sell a company and we call up a journalist and get information published about the fact that our clients are for sale, then potential buyers will come out of the woodwork and they’ll call us. But that would be against what’s best for our client. Not in terms of maximizing value, but it puts pressure on our client to sell their company and that would be wrong for us to do. It compromises their position and it jeopardizes their key employees, all of which diminishes the value of their business. So we would never do that. It’s an example of the type of conflict that you encounter when you’re in banking, and experiences like that make it relatively clear how to handle the conflicts that exist in journalism. The key is to never act against the central objectives of what it is that you’re trying to accomplish. So, PR and media coverage aren’t particularly relevant to what we do because most of our clients are private and the deals we do are not announced until they’re completed. Often [when the deal is public], we can be quoted as bankers, and say that we represented the company and give a nice review of the company in the quote, etc. We enjoy that. That’s our completed work, and, in this business, having people cognizant of your work generates more work and we love that. However, I will also make it clear that I would never write on my blog about anyone that we represent or anyone that we are actively pursuing to represent. That is a conflict and I wouldn’t do it.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Let’s talk a little about your vision for the retail and ecommerce industry. What do you make of large brick-and-mortar closures and Amazon’s momentum? What do brands need to do to survive?</strong></p> <p>It’s so deep. That’s generally what I spend most of my time exploring. Virtually all the things I have written cover that topic in one form or another and there are so many nuances to it. First, it is important to remember that retail is not collapsing – retail is growing. What is changing is who is doing the selling of products to consumers. That is driven by the combination of what consumers want, amplified by changes in technology. Those are enormous shifts and, as I said before, some of the barriers to entry have fallen down and the legacy retailers and brands are under attack. We are seeing the shift of where the power has traditionally been ? the legacy brands and retailers ? to the newcomers, and that’s highly unusual in any industry and a massive change from what the industry has been for decades.</p> <p>You asked me, “What do brands need to survive?” The answer to that is the same as it always has been, which is: “Give consumers what they want.” The challenge is that if you’re a large organization, you are oriented to deliver products in a certain way, and it is very hard for you to deliver products in any other way. Making those changes has proven, thus far, to be almost impossible for large retailers and brands. And when they do make changes, people tend to view them as inauthentic and that hurts the brand even more.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>What are your predictions for the future of the industry?</strong></p> <p>I don’t know about 2018, but there are two sectors in retail that are doing very well which I think people should be really worried about. The first is off-price and the other is beauty. I think off-price is threatened by challenges that the big off-pricers are not dealing with. Namely, competition and technology that will become a big threat over the next several years. Second, I believe that the valuations in the beauty business are subject to being disrupted by change in the industry that we cannot now foresee. It’s hard for me to believe that the valuations that we’re seeing in the beauty business will keep on going. I’m not saying that these changes will happen in 2018, in fact I don’t think they will, but they are going to happen.</p> </div> <div class=

    Matter

    , , ,

  • Target, Toys and the Art of Newsmaking

    “No news is good news.”

    You’d be hard-pressed to hear this uttered in any PR agency setting. It’s a perennial responsibility of agencies to portray clients as dynamic forces in their industries. If our client produces nothing but guitar picks, we’ll go hoarse cheering that this year they sold the MOST guitar picks, or that they’re the first company to produce picks from 100% post-consumer recycled content, or that their picks were used by 40% of performers at Bonnaroo. Pinpointing these interesting angles amongst a maelstrom of murky branding is one of the most rewarding parts of the job, and a non-negotiable skill when writing a good pitch.

    2015 is hardly over yet, but it has already given us some great examples of brands who have either spun no-news straw into gold, or made mountains of pointless molehills, depending on your perspective.

    This week, Target jumped into the fray with an announcement that toy aisle signage in their 1,799 (and counting) stores in the U.S. will drop gender-specific terminology. Essentially, the LEGO aisle will now read “Build Sets” instead of “Build Sets for Boys.” Aisle layout will remain unchanged, and no official statements as of this post suggest a disruption of the familiar but jarring line that bisects Nerf and Star Wars from nine aisles of retina-singeing hot pink Barbie displays. Business as usual, with a very slight change to aisle text.

    No big deal, right?

    It mightn’t have been. Instead, Target seized the opportunity to turn a potentially mundane policy shift into a cultural milestone, riding waves of both outrage and support into the various news and social media feeds of their audiences.

    The significance of aisle text for toys seems minimal. Glaring visual cues, colorful logos, and luring endcaps mean that if you’re at a big box store looking for a Bratz doll, you need only glance, reach out your hand, and pull one from the shelf. They’re easily-browsable by design.

    Dissection of store planograms aside, my point is that Target could have taken this bold step easily and quietly had they skipped the fanfare, removing gender references from signage without the majority of customers even noticing a difference. These types of aisle markers are updated regularly for a variety of innocuous reasons, typically with no notable impact on the shopping experience.

    In the land of big brands, however, “no notable impact” can spell a missed opportunity. Instead of the subtle approach, this week’s splashy announcement garnered exposure on national news outlets and across a variety of social platforms, awarding them a precious 24-hour reign over national conversations about corporate social voice, gender issues, childhood development, and a host of other hot-button topics. To say nothing of the politics of the decision, the communications strategy supporting the announcement is a shrewd, well-executed run at earned media exposure that communicates authentic and relevant thought leadership.

    TIME – Target Finally Listened to My Viral Tweet About Boys’ and Girls’ Toys

    LA Times – Target plays catch-up in removing gender-based toy labels

    Huffington Post – Target Angers Customers With Its Stores’ New Non-Gendered Policy

    The killing blow, whether intentional or by coincidence, is the timing. This family-oriented announcement preempts most competitors’ traditional back-to-school marketing. Old Navy might be pushing ads for discounted jeans to stock your scholastic wardrobe, but for the better part of a week, Target is dominating parents’ social media feeds, nightly news broadcasts, office breakroom discussions, or even a company blog (ahem) with relevant cultural dialog. Locking down that unfair share of voice is a big deal as families are planning back-to-school budgets, which rose 8% on average over last year.

    But what’s the risk to Target’s bottom line? Potentially, very little.

    Target’s ubiquity and all-in-one-shopping value proposition means that many folks vocally put off by the policy change will once again pass under one of 1,799 scarlet marquees once this story fades. Carts will swell with laundry detergent, dog food, Game of Thrones Blu Rays, and the seduction of instant retail gratification will win back all but the most irretrievably offended. In the short term, supporters of the decision will also see themselves philosophically aligned with the brand, and feel a twinge of pride the next time they swipe their credit card.

    My preceding speculation notwithstanding, there’s still a lot that marketing and communications professionals can glean from this announcement about the subtleties of positioning and newsmaking. And who better to learn from than a successful, high-visibility brand like Target?

    A few takeaways:

    • Interpret national trends and conversations through the lens of your brand, and hunt down relevant, timely entry points to make your mark.
    • Take risks, but calculate them. Boring companies don’t make news, but wild shots can take you beyond controlled controversy and into the danger zone.
    • Consumer brands are often made or broken over the emotional response they inspire in their base. Finding creative ways for audiences to identify with your brand’s voice is a frontier of consumer engagement that shouldn’t be ignored.

    A quick note: We work with a lot of big retailers and consumer brands, some of which have relationships with Target, so we’re always looking at their communications strategies with interest. The above reflects the perspective of this writer, and is in no way informed by proprietary knowledge of this or any other related brand.

    Matter

    , , , , ,

  • In launch of #OneGoodReason, CVS demonstrates ‘3 Good Reasons’ we can all learn from them

    As you may have caught on the news on your drive in yesterday morning or throughout the day on Wednesday, it’s a big week for drugstore chain (and Matter client) CVS.

    Earlier this year CVS Caremark made a commitment to stop selling cigarettes and other tobacco products at all CVS/pharmacy stores by October 1, 2014 – becoming the first national pharmacy to do so. Yesterday morning CVS officially ended tobacco sales in all CVS/pharmacy locations, one month earlier than expected. Additionally, the company announced it would change its corporate name from CVS Caremark to “CVS Health” – a name that better reflects the overall company’s purpose of helping customers on their path to better health. (The CVS/pharmacy name of its retail stores will remain the same.) As part of their planting a major stake in the ground and renewing their focus as a healthcare company first and foremost, CVS Health rolled out a smoking cessation program to help people kick the habit, with resources and services available at CVS/pharmacy and MinuteClinic locations nationwide, and also kicked off a social media movement (#OneGoodReason) with an event at Bryant Park in New York City, and a flurry of tweets and posts on Facebook that have captured the attention (and support) of movers and shakers ranging from celebrity gossip blogger Perez Hilton, Senators Dick Durbin, Dianne Feinstein and Tom Harkin, actresses Rita Wilson and Josie Davis, model and activist Christy Turlington, and even First Lady Michelle Obama.

    Naturally, any time one of our clients is in the news for something positive that they are doing, it’s a proud day for Matter. The fact that we are fortunate enough to be a partner of theirs, helping to launch this milestone effort is frankly, a noteworthy milestone for us, as well – to be a part of something this huge in the national news landscape, helping to drive the social media and influencer outreach that is establishing the movement, is exactly the kind of work that we are all so passionate about here. That said, aside from the huge THANK YOU going out to those on our CVS team who have been working hard to make the initiative successful, what struck me most as I was traveling back from NYC last night is that there are so many great take-aways from this launch that really demonstrate why the leadership team at CVS is to be commended – and why they are such a terrific client we continue to learn from. So in a nod to their campaign (and fully recognizing this list could go on much longer), here are three good reasons why other brands and PR agencies should take a close look at what they are doing, and keep these best practices in mind:

    1. We’re all in this together: collaboration with multiple agencies and partners is key – and should be encouraged. It’s no secret that brands as large as CVS Health (and many much, much smaller) rely on multiple partners for multiple aspects of their business. As one partner who’s been working with the team at CVS for nearly a decade now on various public relations, blogger and social media programs, we have been lucky enough to brainstorm with a number of their other strategic partners – ad agencies, creative firms, branding experts and the like. What’s important to remember is that there’s no room for egos, and one of the things we’ve loved about working with CVS on major campaigns through the years is that we are given opportunities to work side-by-side with these other teams. At the end of the day, they “get it” – the best part of having more than one partner to turn to, is that they can all contribute together to sharing ideas and ultimately working with their internal team to bring fresh perspectives and past experiences to bear, so that as a collective team we can land on the best idea, that will get the best results, and execute it as well as possible.
    1. Being bold works, as long as you’re willing to stick with it. Whether it’s a serious issue you’re tackling, like CVS Health’s exit from the tobacco category, or a more playful marketing-focused initiative like the ExtraBucks MoneyTrashers campaign from a few years back, it’s important to approach each with an open mind and a willingness to take a very public stand and share the reasons behind why you are doing what you are doing. CVS has not been shy about making big moves and then sharing the reasons behind their decisions, and standing firm in their belief that they’re making the right decision, at the right time, for their brand (and for their business). Other brands should take this to heart. Accept that you might get criticism along with the praise, and that’s OK as long as you believe in what you are doing and have reasons to back up your choices. Because trust me – the world will hold you accountable, and reporters will ask tough questions! Of course, it’s icing on the cake when your reasons and decisions can be tied to a real, meaningful cause like this one is – these types of corporate action make it even a prouder moment for us to be partnered with a company that is doing good for the world while also doing good for their own business.
    1. The power of social media cannot be denied – but must be harnessed delicately. For about eight years now, PR professionals and marketers have been faced with the realization that social media has become an invaluable, tricky and powerful piece of the communications puzzle. But no matter how often we try, we cannot push a “Go viral!” button or guarantee that something will take off the way we want it to – or conversely, stay quiet if we wish it would be ignored. That’s why it is truly awe-inspiring to witness the power of social media in action and really understand how critical it is to approach this channel the right way. In this case, in launching #OneGoodReason it was important that, as a team, we tapped into the possibilities of social media in a way that was authentic and not self-aggrandizing. CVS (and we) wanted to encourage consumer participation in spreading the word and showing support for quitting smoking – not just patting ourselves on the back or making it all about what a smart move CVS is making. This issue is one that is very personal to people, and so part of the reason the launch has been so instantly successful and has inspired such a diverse group of people from all walks of life to take part is that we’re asking them to share those personal connections and stories, and using social media as a platform to elevate all of their individual voices. The heart of CVS’ campaign is to join together as a greater community with the greater goal of saying farewell to tobacco. And that’s something that many people want to be a part of.

    Not every brand will face a decision as momentous as the one CVS Health made this year. But every day, we are faced with opportunities to counsel our clients on how to approach their business decisions strategically and with a creative lens. I know I’ve learned a lot through our work with CVS – and I’m looking forward to continuing to learn from the bold moves and smart thinking from them, and from other brands, as well. The trick is taking those lessons learned, and applying them to future work…because ultimately, that’s what our clients expect from us.

     

    Matt Mendolera-Schamann

    ,
    , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,