I love the blog Church of the Customer (an outgrowth of Jackie Huba and Ben McConnell’s work, particularly in the More Rider Magazine-reviewed book Creating Customer Evangelists). Today, Jackie has 10 questions with Rob Walker who wrote a book called Buying In: The Secret Dialogue Between What We Buy And Who We Are. This is my favorite question and answer, because it taught me that even though we like to think that all our potential riders are rational people who will ride the bus when it is convenient and cheap to do so, the social meaning of taking the bus (”I’m poor!” or “I’m unsuccessful!” *or* “I’m smart!” or “I’m an up-and-comer!”) matters much more than we like to admit. And so, we need to shape the social meaning of taking the bus head on to get more riders.
Q: You think we’re not so immune to branding and logos as some of us think we are. How so, and do you include yourself in that? A: Sure, although I didn’t used to. For me, the breakthrough was Nike buying Converse. I’d already been writing about branding and approaching the subject as an above-it-all journalist. I was the outsider, the detached observer, unaffected by things I was documenting. As a business journalist, I have great respect for Nike. As a consumer, I would never, ever, wear the swoosh. I’d always worn Converse sneakers since my teen years. I never said to myself, “I wear Converse sneakers to identify with my rebel rocker heroes.” Nobody has those conscious thoughts. But I was bothered that Converse would be owned by Nike. I wasn’t sure I could wear Converse anymore because somehow its “meaning” had changed. Then I caught myself: If I’m so immune to “brand meaning,” why am I having a crisis over sneakers? It was a reality check. It’s something I consider every time someone tells me that brands mean nothing to them. It affected my approach to the book, which is aimed at people who have the mindset I used to have. We’re better off if we get over being brandproof and embrace the idea that this stuff does have meaning.
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