Citizen Strategist: Does the Dunkin Donuts Controversy Signal The Start Of The Age Of Confrontation For Chief Marketing Officers?

May 29, 2008

Does the Dunkin Donuts Controversy Signal The Start Of The Age Of Confrontation For Chief Marketing Officers?

As a marketer I have been on the tail end of the industrial age and the leading age of the information age. I think the Dunkin Donuts controversy may officially signal the start of a new age for marketers - the age of confrontation. Visit the New York Times today for an even handed explanation of the Dunkin Donuts controversy - then read the comments to get a taste of the confrontation that other CMO's are going to face should they make the same mistakes Dunkin Donuts made.

The age of confrontation can be characterized by the confluence of three forces - hyper-competition on a global scale, hyper-sensitivity by increasingly antagonistic special interest groups and technology platforms that enable and amplify vicious attacks from both competitors and special interests.

So what are CMO's to do in the age of confrontation? Three things:

1. Remain absolutely agnostic. Make sure your brand communications are scrubbed of all messages or symbols that might offend anybody within your target audience.

2. Become totally committed. If your enterprise wants to back or promote a cause then do it full on, above board, and be prepared to fight for and defend the cause.

3. Learn how to fight. The tools and techniques favored by marketers over the last several years will not allow them to survive in the age of confrontation.

Here are other posts on the Dunkin Donuts controversy:

The Real Issue With Dunkin Donuts and The Rachel Ray Keffiyeh Controversy

Did Marketing Activists Just Hijack the Dunkin Donuts Brand?

Posted on May 29, 2008 in 08 - On Marketing Practices and Competitiveness | Permalink

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