A few years ago, we helped our client, Bigelow Tea, produce a video showing viewers how to naturally decaffeinate an ordinary teabag. (Why would someone do this? Because sometimes a cafe doesn’t have your favorite flavor in a decaf version, so wouldn’t it be great to reduce that caffeine level all by yourself?)
There was just one problem: the metrics Bigelow cited in that video were outdated. Newer studies had clarified the expected levels of caffeine after natural decaffeination, and they differed from the numbers in the video.
Fortunately, one astute viewer noticed this discrepancy and brought it to Bigelow’s attention.
Even better? Bigelow listened.
Initially, they hoped they could fix those numbers with updated graphics, but there was no way around the numbers Cindi Bigelow herself was saying aloud throughout the how-to section.
So, in the end, they opted to have Creative Concepts (that’s us) reshoot the whole video and replace it across all video outlets. Cindi even tracked two of the most recent studies the night before the video was filmed, just to ensure that the numbers were still in line.
In Bigelow’s view, sharing accurate information is far more important than cutting corners. They pride themselves on providing their customers with insights and information they can count on, and when those facts and figures are in dispute, they take their corrections very seriously.
How committed to clarity is your company? (And are they listening to their customers to make sure their messages are being heard… and heard correctly?)
On the web, video works wonders. It’s fast-paced, personable, entertaining and informative. And since production time is always a factor, it helps to have a solid plan in place to make sure you stay on track and under budget.
But if there’s one thing we’ve learned here at Creative Concepts, it’s that our best-laid video production plans often need to be scrapped once the camera starts rolling.
Here are three examples of the ways we’ve adapted our original video ideas to suit a client’s newfound needs — or to accommodate the limits of reality.
“What Do YOU Know About the Children’s Aid Society?”
That was the question we expected to ask people on the streets of New York. And their answer?
Well… as it turned out, not much.
Although nearly everyone we spoke with had heard ofThe Children’s Aid Society, most of them weren’t quite sure what the charity actually does. Despite operating in NYC for over 150 years, we quickly realized the organization was still “under the radar” for most New Yorkers.
When we recognized this disconnect between public impact and public image, we adapted our video’s premise and used our “man-on-the-street” style Q&As to educate the the viewers about the charity’s multitude of programs.
The First Rule of Live Event Planning: Something ALWAYS Goes Wrong
Ruth Ridgeway is a veteran event planner in the New York City market. As such, she’s unflappable in the face of any challenge — including having her entire event crew videotaped during one of their signature two-day location transformations.
But when the wrong furniture gets delivered and there’s no time to revise her designs, Ruth switches from “management mode” to “problem-solving dynamo” in seconds — and our video capitalizes on her shrewdly-solved conundrum.
Have A Cup of Tea with (Windblown) Wally at Fenway Park
Even when everything goes right, there’s still no way to control the weather.
As proud sponsors of the Boston Red Sox, Bigelow Tea was thrilled to have a chance to shoot a quirky video with Wally the Green Monster. The idea was to have Cindi Bigelow herself teach Wally how to make a cup of tea. But the weather refused to cooperate, forcing Cindi and Wally to race through the process before their props blew clear across the field.
The lesson?
No matter what happens, find a way to make the most of every unexpected, inconvenient and downright blustery situation.
A recent article about a social media-savvy Domino’s Pizza franchise in Chicago proves that even a bad customer experience can lead to positive opportunities. In this case, it revolutionized the way this particular pizza shop interfaces with its customers and manages their expectations.
It also reminds us of a story about our own client, Bigelow Tea, and how they turned customer frustration into customer loyalty.
In January of 2007, fans of Bigelow’s Fruit & Almond tea were having trouble finding it in stores. Confused, they went to the website and learned it had been discontinued. Because one ingredient had become difficult to acquire, and due to Fruit & Almond’s relatively low sales (compared to their top-selling teas), Bigelow had opted to cease this flavor’s production.
Now frustrated with Bigelow’s decision, Fruit & Almond fans turned to the first interactive channel they could find — namely, the comments of a completely unrelated Bigelow Tea blog post — and asked for help.
After receiving a litany of impassioned comments on the subject, Cindi Bigelow blogged the economic reality of the Fruit & Almond decision and apologized for the inconvenience. But, having also seen this situation as an opportunity, Cindi realized that Fruit & Almond tea just might be worth saving.
Bigelow already had enough ingredients to make another 400 cases of the flavor. They used that announcement to buy their R&D department time to concoct a new recipe that could be produced cost-effectively while still satisfying the flavor’s fans.
As much as we enjoy a happy ending, we love it even more when it reinforces our core business belief: Listen to your customers. If they care enough to complain, it means they want a reason to keep coming back.
Politics — and political correctness — are tricky things. Everyone’s entitled to their own beliefs, but when a business becomes associated with a political sound bite, those beliefs can create a PR problem. (See our previous post about what PR can’t help you do in a crisis.)
Back in 2007, Don Imus made a now-infamous remark about the Rutgers women’s basketball team. As the news media swirled around the controversy, his sponsors (including our client, Bigelow Tea), were caught in the middle. They each had to make a choice: continue to sponsor Imus’s show, or retract their sponsorship as an ethical statement?
After considering all possibilities, Bigelow did something all too rare in the business world: they led with their gut.
They publicly denounced Imus’s statement and disagreed with its sentiment, but they also continued to support him. It was a fine line to walk, supporting an individual while disagreeing with a particular choice he’d made.
Needless to say, the public took aim at Bigelow. Their blog became a clearing house for all kinds of opinions, from people who admired Bigelow’s judgment to those who vowed to never buy Bigelow again. The noise got so loud, even mainstream press, like CNN and others, visited the blog to research Bigelow’s position so they could then interview Cindi Bigelow, President of Bigelow Tea, about the company’s decision.
Had Bigelow acted differently in this case, they might not have needed to make a public statement. They might not even have needed to mention their choice at all. But with our support and guidance, they opted to use the two-way channel of their blog to speak directly with the people most concerned about the incident, and to understand exactly why their choice may or may not have upset their potential (and existing customers).
In the end, like most tempests in a teapot, the Imus issue was resolved and the public turned their attention to newer, shinier controversies. Meanwhile, Bigelow Tea’s own market share continued to grow, with the exposure — both positive and negative — from the incident doing little to curb their long-term sales.
And when Imus landed a new radio show, Bigelow was there to sponsor him again. In fact, Cindi Bigelow herself was part of the Imus Radiothon this past week, helping to raise money for children battling cancer.
So… do we all make mistakes? Absolutely. But we also make good choices, too.
When judging a person — or a brand — it helps to take the whole of their actions into account. And with the reach and permanence of social media, it’s easier than ever for discerning consumers to research the brands they’re interested in and decide for themselves which companies are worth supporting.
Ever wonder if your messaging sticks with your audience? Just ask your kids.
When we joined Cindi Bigelow on a trip to her alma mater (Boston College), we were blown away by just how many college students drink tea (we figured college was a serious coffee haven). But even more surprising than the students’ taste for tea was how they developed their tea-drinking habits: it came from their families.
If you had told us beforehand that we’d find a random wave of passersby (none of the students were pre-selected) and almost all of them would have had a love of tea instilled in them by their parents, we would have said you were crazy. Why? Because of sterotypical preconceptions, like:
Kids don’t listen to their parents
Kids rebel
Kids define their own personalities in opposition to family tradition
College students have horrible eating habits
College students live off caffeine
And so on.
Yet, if college students are willing to admit that their parents’ love of tea has rubbed off on them, what other bits of wisdom (or, conversely, what other bad habits) have you passed on to your kids?
Thanksgiving is right around the corner. If you have students returning home from college — or if it’s you who’s heading home for the holidays — take a moment and find out which elements of your (or your parents’) messaging have survived the gap between the backyard and the dorm. You may be surprised.
And you may learn a thing or two about the kinds of messages that last.
When you’re just starting out in business, you can get bombarded with advice on how to do (or not do) just about everything. So here’s a tip: focus on the advice from people who were once in the exact same spot you’re in, and who somehow managed to navigate their way to long-term success.
One such compendium of information is Young Professional’s Guide to Success by Ryan Kohnen, which includes business tips from Cindi Bigelow, President and CEO of (our client) Bigelow Tea. Among Cindi’s rules for workplace success: “Remember that people are watching you.” And while her observation is meant to highlight the importance of leading by example, it also serves as a reminder of the changing times we live in, where more and more of what we do and say is available (and searchable) online. Now setting a positive example extends beyond the boardroom and applies to “public” forums like Facebook, Twitter and Flickr — proof that your actions define you, no matter where those actions take place.
Worried? Don’t be — everyone’s human, and everyone makes mistakes. But if your mistakes are going to be cached on Google for all eternity, they should at least be mistakes that everyone (including you) can learn from.
This video produced for our client Bigelow Tea is not only a perfect example of how to use video within the social media channels but it’s just a good business model to follow. Cindi Bigelow, President Bigelow Tea, hit the streets of New York City and got an earful about tea from everyone she talked to. No crazy editing, no corporate speak, just honesty from both Cindi and the variety of people she ran into.
Others seem to appreciate this as well. Take a look at what Chris Brogan has to say here and our mention of the video on our Business Smart Tools site here.
Here is our lastest video featuring Wally the Green Monster, mascot for the Red Sox, and Cindi Bigelow, of Bigelow Tea. Cindi loves to make the perfect cup of tea!
We love making these videos for great clients like Bigelow Tea! Check out the bigelow blog if you have a minute.
Bigelow Tea, our client, has been featured in John C. Havens’ and Shel Holtz’s book Tactical Transparency. It’s not out yet but the two authors spoke about it at the most recent New Media Expo in Las Vegas. Attendees were more fired up than ever to get their clients or themselves into the social media mix.
Read more from the Trafcomm News blog by Donna Papacosta here.
Nothing better than a well done interview featuring our client (Bigelow Tea)!
Nothing better than a well done interview featuring our client who talks about having a ball with social media (where we at Creative Concepts support all of their efforts!)!
