While other clothing companies try to lure their (primarily female) customers into buying more and more clothes, the outdoor clothing brand Patagonia tries to convey a completely contradictory message: Their slogan “Don’t buy this jacket” combined with a picture of one of their own products relates to a new campaign aiming at reducing, repairing, reusing and recycling.
As Emily analyzed in her blog post from October 5th, Patagonia tries to create shared value by broaching the environmental concerns of their target group, as customers are asked to think twice before buying clothes in order to reduce waste and environmentally unfriendly cloth production.
Besides the strong relationship that Patagonia builds with its target segment as Emily outlined, their campaign could also be seen as strategic marketing, since advertisements as bizarre and unconventional as Patagonia’s latest launch definitely win the “battle over customer’s mind” and therefore spreads brand awareness among potential customers.
Nevertheless, it is admirable how Patagonia connects taking over corporate social responsibility and creating shared value with increasing sales and building an even more reliable customer base.
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