This is something that I have been thinking about for a while. Recently I have heard a couple of stories which have really proved the point to me. And so I wanted to get the start of the thought process down on paper.
Nowadays it is far too easy for a company to have its reputation dented. It only takes one disgruntled consumer to blog about it or put a bad review on a site and already it's out there for everyone to see. What is it that gets people's backs up so much. Generally it's dishonesty or the sense that the company isn't being completely open. So what is the best way to avoid this? Well obviously, it is to be as open as possible.
My years of consumer research have taught me that if people think you are being honest, that they are prepared to listen to quite a lot of arguments and discussion without coming down on you like a ton of bricks.
An example - if consumers complain that a company is moving its workforce to another country where it is cheaper to produce their goods, then the company should publish a simple equation which says what producing the goods in the country would cost the consumer and should openly discuss the pros and cons. Of course there is the possibility that this could also backfire but there is nowadays with everything.
Or another example - which I have seen demonstrated in person - a company involves consumers in its NPD. So much so that they also discuss the pros and cons of a particular type of packaging with them. It is amazing how understanding consumers are when you tell them, yes that is an amazing piece of packaging but it doesn't fit in the standard displays and so we would never be able to get the product listed and so all our hard work would be for nothing.
In fact what I think this all comes down to and this applies to employee - employer relationships as well - is creating a sense of involvement in the process beyond the mere transactional. This in turn engenders a sense of ownership. And that makes people feel like they are part of something. And that can only be good.
