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I like the idea of people "taking it" to the gas companies, as this begins to pertain to the effect of a brand on the populace. Exxon is seen as an uncaring, price-gouging behemoth (mainly because it acts like one) and people are fed up.
A chain letter has circled the globe suggesting that we boycott Exxon/Mobil to make them lower their prices - in hopes that this will result in the corporation lowering their prices. Good idea for some industries, but not for gas and oil. You see, Exxon doesn't just have a single pipeline to bring its products to market. They don't just sell through Exxon/Mobil stations. They can sell their product to other companies who will then sell the exact same gasoline to you for whatever price they choose. So when we boycott any gasoline station that refines their own oil we primarily end up hurting entities we don't want to cause pain - the local gas station owners (or LGOs). Let's assume we are successful in the boycott. LGOs feel the pinch and HQ notices. HQ begins rerouting oil and gas to other companies behind the scenes. LGOs have less gas available so they make less money. HQ does not feel a significant pinch because they can sell the oil or gas earlier in the refining process (or even at the same point - but have it shipped to a competitor.) Do we put Exxon out of business? Nope. We might shut down some LGOs - or maybe even turn Exxon into a refining and distribution company if we're irrationally successful with a boycott - but we're not close enough to the root product of the company to be able to materially affect their trade. If there were a way to prevent Exxon gas from making it into other distribution channels that would work, but I'm not sure that people are invested enough in the outcome to make that happen. How does this relate to branding? Exxon has done a poor job of coming up with a compelling brand. They've had huge PR (and environmental) blunders and never really recover from anything - even though they talk a big game. I ask you this - Would a company that truly cared about the environment have bathrooms that look like the ones you find at Exxon/Mobil? If cleanliness mattered they'd enforce it in their own buildings. However, the fact that they're seen as a bad company doesn't really hurt their bottom line. Why? Because no one in the industry is doing anything different. The industry self-commodotizes since they seem to buy from each other and don't have a materially different product. Do you want to buy Product X from a local business or a national chain? Essentially you're just paying for marketing and infrastructure when you go to the big guys. If you don't buy from them they may lose a little profit from not getting to get the retail markup, but they'll still get a profit from somewhere. Until we figure out how not to use gasoline we're going to be stuck paying the big guys big bucks... Even if we never buy a drop from them. ...but imagine the effect if a company actually did take the time to do this the right way. Clean bathrooms, pricing that was based on actual costs and margins, no "9/10ths of a cent"... I'd shop there in a heartbeat. Edit: Linking to a few interesting insights on other blogs. I'm not alone in my opinions, it seems... Try Here, Here, and Here... and especially Here Tate Linden Principal Consultant Stokefire Consulting Group 703-778-9925 |
