Ben & Jerry's: Their Scoop on Social Media (Blog #5)

To Ben & Jerry’s, social media is an essential part of their communication network.  Blogging, in particular, has become a major focus.  It is used both internally and externally.  In fact, their emphasis on blogging has brought them attention as a leader in the corporate use of this form of social media. 

In their 2^nd Quarter Newsletter, acclaro, a Global Business Translator, used Ben & Jerry’s new French Blog as their example of an outstanding international blog.  Their lead Marketing article, MARKETING: Lessons from Ben & Jerry’s:  The Scoop on Multilingual Blogging, makes the case for the value and importance of blogging in general, and culturally appropriate blogging in particular.   The complete article can be found at http://www.acclaro.com/newsletter/international-multilingual-blogging.   However, this excerpt from the article summarizes the strength of Ben & Jerry’s media presence and their attention to every detail related to their image and the marketing of their products.

 “And for the cherry on the sundae: in tandem with their European product launch, Ben & Jerry's created a blog specifically for the French market. A mini brand website, Ben & Jerry's French blog is not only totally local in flavor — it is also modern in feel, complete with multimedia to heighten fans' sensorial experience of their content. Like every successful marketing tool, the blog supports the business objectives for this specific language market by providing locale-sensitive content that is:

•     Educational: posts explain the origins of Ben & Jerry's zany flavors

•    Entertaining: recipes and games make the fan experience fun and encourage them to spend more time on the website

•     Engaging: the format favors an on-going conversation about all things ice cream in French, removing barriers to communicating with fans

•    Event-oriented: emphasizes localness with promotions such as "Free Cone Day" in select cities and new offers such as member cards: "la carte bonus"

Demonstrating a local presence in a market can be done through a tastefully localized website, but a local-language blog like Ben & Jerry's clearly takes this a step further. The marketing benefits obtained are the same as for your English-language blog:

•                Building community around your products

•                Improving your search engine rankings

•                Circulating your content in the social media space

•                Establishing thought leadership in your area of expertise

•                Developing credibility

•                Extending your branding

•                Giving your corporation a "human face”

With this level of media exposure and the obvious care given to the design and content, it is easy to understand why Ben & Jerry’s is so well known as a corporation and leader in marketing.  Product visibility is no longer just position on the store shelves it has to contain a modern edge, an invitation to the consumer, and a meeting of the customer through their choice of media. Broad exposure is one thing but targeted blogging and connecting “personally” is another. To achieve this internationally requires the use of local, culturally specific, language and customs in images and text. Ben & Jerry’s has mastered this and through it has forwarded their positive image and broadened their market.

Internally, Ben & Jerry’s sees the value of blogging. They have their own visible blogs but there are also blogs related to their Activism and flavor choices, just to mention two.  If an employee were to create a new blog for or about Ben & Jerry’s, it should be designed and written by one of the farmers who provides the company with dairy products. I feel that the farmers are the basis of the company’s success and the Ben & Jerry’s workers locally and internationally would feel a connection to them. It would give a “face” to the company, and as a result, consumers would feel a greater connection to the final product.

Topics should cover the positive benefits of Ben & Jerry’s on the personal level, improving the life and livelihood of the farmer, and on the global level, of decreasing the carbon footprint of everyone involved in the Ben & Jerry’s “family.”  Topics might include information about sustainability, recycling, composting, lowering of overhead and general economic impacts on the individual and community.

Ben & Jerry’s has not used a celebrity spokesperson, though many unsolicited slots have been offered through the media.  One good example is Stephen Colbert, and the Colbert Report.  Colbert has shamelessly promoted “his” Ben & Jerry’s flavor Americone Dream.  The value of this free advertising cannot be overlooked.

I don’t think that Ben & Jerry’s should hire a celebrity spokesperson because their entire image is related to folksy, down-home, old-fashioned, good clean fun.  Any spokesperson opens the opportunity for that image to be sullied or lost just by virtue of its “slick” and obvious marketing.  Additionally, should the person be found to participate in some less than savory behavior, it would be difficult to separate the company form the spokesperson.  It is safer and more in keeping with the Ben & Jerry’s philosophy to remain “spokesperson free.”

Ben & Jerry’s use of social media, blogging in particular is extensive, long-sighted, well written, culturally specific and a model for other corporations that want to move into this form of media and communication.  Ben & Jerry’s does it, and does it well.  They demonstrate intelligent corporate leadership while making the consumer feel that the company remains a locally based, grass-roots organization.  This is a line that is hard to walk, it is an art, and Ben & Jerry’s   is walking that line without wobbling.