This month the McKinsey Quarterly provides a comprehensive look at Rebuilding Corporate Reputations. Today, public perceptions are molded by the swift far reaching strokes of a vast array of media, bloggers, NGOs, and other influencers, and as a result, “now more than ever, it will be action—not spin—that builds strong reputations.” It is no surprise that in the current economic climate, companies need to employ strategies that go beyond fleeting PR campaigns. Articles such as this one in yesterday’s NYT seem to further validate that the public is not only interested in the evolution of the banking industry, but also their marketing efforts. As brands evolve, McKinsey calls for marketers to step up their efforts at transparency and creating a two way dialogue as a way of building trust. Ultimately, the companies to achieve success in the wake of today’s challenges will be those who work with a rapid sense of urgency to listen, respond through genuine action, and ultimately build trust. This emphasis on what brands do, not just what they say, reminded me of Gareth Kay’s stirring look at The Future of Marketing.
There is no question the tools to manage one’s reputation exist in abundance. New media provides methods to gain insight from a diverse array of segments, and to respond with rapid speed. In store interactive allows us to capture information about the customer experience as it occurs in branch AND gather opinions from all segments rather than just those who are tech savvy information sharers. To become truly resilient, brands will need to reaffirm what they say through shaping the customer experience. Today, it seems the public is as hopeful as it is cynical. Rather than saying “let’s move on,” let’s ask, “how can we continually do better?”
