Retain Customers by Building Community

 

While some may think that an annual customer retention rate of 80% is good, that means you loose one out of every five customers each year. Theoretically, this translates to 100% turnover every five years. And, as most business owners know, it is much more cost effective to retain a current customer than to acquire a new customer.

There are many approaches to retaining customers. Frequency programs purport to do so as do other customer loyalty programs. CRM systems are supposed to help with this. Some companies try to lock customers in through multi-year contracts and automatic rebilling. But the best approach to customer retention is community building because community building creates emotional connection and stickiness. People stay with the brand because it has created a community for them.

Think about how powerful coffee klatches, book clubs and bridge groups are. Imagine if you could create that type of community with your brand's customers.

So, what are some community building techniques?

• Producing user conferences.
• Creating customer advisory boards and customer steering committees. 
• Engaging customers through Facebook pages and other social media platforms.
• Holding customer meet-ups.
• Creating local brand-focused customer clubs.
• Creating physical spaces where customers can interact.
• Holding customer holiday parties and appreciation events.
• Recruiting panels of customers to beta test your new products.

Hallmark sponsors local Hallmark ornament collectors' clubs. Tesla Owners Clubs hold frequent owner meetups. Many wealth management firms hold holiday parties for their clients. Orvis offers free fly tying and casting clinics for its customers. Robert Graham offers exclusive closed door events for people who achieve Master Collector status within their Collector's Club. Most colleges and universities invite their graduates back to reunions every five years. Large churches create small groups focused on different interests to retain parishioners. Patagonia supports grassroots groups working to find solutions to the environmental crisis. Eastern Mountain Sports encourages people to share their outdoor photographs on Instagram with #goEast. SONY's Playstation has create an online space for gamers to connect. Harley Owner's Group (HOG) has more than one million members and holds HOG Rallies around the world. P&G created "Being Girl" as a resource for teenager girls to connect and find answers to the difficult questions that growing up entails. Lululemon's brand community offers free yoga classes, festivals and events and even an experiential store in Chicago featuring fitness studios and a juice bar.

If you want to retain more customers, identify and implement ways to create community among those customers. 

Core Human Needs and Marketing

Psychologists have long hypothesized, studied and tested what they believe to be the core human needs. While most psychologists highlight six basic needs, many also include a seventh need. Here are the seven needs:

1. Certainty/Safety/Comfort/Control/Security
2. Love/Affection/Physical and Emotional Connection
3. Significance/Respect/Uniqueness/Feeling Special
4. Competence/Mastery
5. Contribution/Making a Difference
6. Variety/Experience/Stimulation/Novelty/Satisfying Curiosity
7. Independence/Freedom/Autonomy

Most people experience deficiencies in meeting one or more of these needs on a regular basis. Knowing this, marketers can target their brands' unique value propositions and marketing messages to address these needs.

Kintsugi is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the areas of breakage with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum. As a philosophy, it treats breakage and repair as part of the history of an object, rather than something to disguise. As a marketer, consider your role to be that of delivering Kintsugi to your brand's customers, that is to help them to fill their perceived deficiencies or brokenness with your brand's "gold."

As an exercise, try to identify at least one brand that focuses on each of these core human needs.

As an example, here is my list:

1. Certainty/Safety/Comfort/Control/Security - National Car Rental
2. Love/Affection/Physical and Emotional Connection - Hallmark
3. Significance/Respect/Uniqueness/Feeling Special - MINI Cooper
4. Competence/Mastery - Footjoy
5. Contribution/Making a Difference - Patagonia
6. Variety/Experience/Stimulation/Novelty/Satisfying Curiosity - Dr. Pepper
7. Independence/Freedom/Autonomy - Marlboro

These needs are fundamental and very powerful. Consider how your brand can promise the fulfillment of one or more of these needs. 

Sharing Your Brand's Values Through Storytelling

Sharing a set of values with customers is one of a brand's most important sources of emotional connection with its customers. I have written before about brands that do this well.

There are a variety of ways to communicate those values, but one powerful way is through brand storytelling, especially if the story is about the founder's vision or legacy. Often, this is found in the "Our Story" section of the "About Us" section on websites.

Here are some good examples of that:

• Patagonia
• Newman's Own
• Burt's Bees
• IKEA
• Zappos
• The Body Shop
• Ben & Jerry's
• Minnetonka
• Warby Parker
• John Deere
• Trader Joe's

I hope these examples help you think through how you might tell an emotionally compelling story about your brand highlighting its origins and its values. 

Emotionally Connecting with Your Customers

Most brands want to connect emotionally with their customers but few actually do. What does it take to create that emotional connection?

Brands that create emotional connection are deliberate about achieving it. First, those brands and their brand owners often have a strong set of values, values that they ultimately share with their customers. For example, Patagonia's almost reverent love of the outdoors and a pristine environment. Or Tesla's and Elon Musk's dream of a post-fossil fuel world. Or FOX New's focus on a very specific view of the world.

Next, those brands need to really understand their customers. They need to possess deep customer insight. This usually happens through qualitative research, often using guided imagery and projective techniques.  They need to understand customer self-perceptions, beliefs, attitudes, values, hopes, fears and anxieties. We helped Footjoy do this to refocus its brand from superior functional attributes (keeps your feet dry on a wet course) to a self-expressive benefit - The Mark of a Player.

Next, one must carefully design the customer experience. This may include customer journey mapping and customer touch point design. Often these brands create customer experience or engagement manager positions to maintain focus on the customer experience.

Next comes building the customer experience into the culture. Disney does this well, as does Zappos, Nordstrom and Starbucks. One of my favorite examples of this is Ritz-Carlton's "Ladies and Gentlemen Serving Ladies and Gentlemen." If you are interested in creating a better customer experience,  I would encourage you to read Be Our Guest (Disney), The Zappos Experience, The Nordstrom Way - Customer Service Excellence, Leading the Starbucks Way and especially The New Gold Standard (Ritz-Carlton).

At Hallmark, we pursued a Legendary Service initiative, in which we encouraged customer facing employees to deliver service that is so unexpected and extraordinary that those service moments became the basis of widely told legendary stories.

This notion of emotional connection needs to work its way into the brand's essence, mission, vision, values, promise, unique value proposition, archetype and personality. That is, it needs to become part of the brand's DNA.

One way we work with our clients to do this is to create "We believe..." statements, statements which reflect their values and that will connect emotionally with their customers.

There are many tools and techniques to create deep emotional connection with customers. If your brand is not connecting emotionally with its customers, contact us. We can help you make that happen.

Other related blog posts:

• Fast Food and the Customer Experience
• Customer Service Comes of Age at Insurance Companies
• Branding from the Inside Out
• Creating the Total Brand Experience - Starbucks
• 10 Proven Steps to Align Your Organization with Its Brand Promise
• Mastering the Art of Brand Engagement
• Brands and Core Values
• Brand Personality as a Point of Difference
• Marketing and the Deep Understanding of Human Behavior
• Brands and Humans
• Brands and Authenticity
• The Reemergence of Authenticity
• Brands and Emotional Connection
• Brands and Their Emotional Appeal
• Purpose Driven Brands
• Brands and Positive Emotions
• How Do You Want Your Brand to Impact its Customers?
• Brands and Empathy
• Brands and the Emotions They Evoke
• Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
• Brands and Freedom
• Brands and Belonging
• Mind Blowing Brands
• Brands and Tribalism
• Tribal Branding
• Brands are People Too
• Customer-Centric Branding
• Differentiating on the Unexpected
• What do people want?
• States of Mind
• Customer Service and Brand Perceptions

Brand Leadership

Unfortunately, there are too few true leaders in this world. Authentic leaders, not just people assigned to leadership roles, possess a number of unique qualities. They are visionary, charismatic, introspective, compassionate, decisive, and above all, inspiring. They tend to be self-aware and curious. They care about people and enjoy lifelong learning. And often, they embody the brand's values and are the most passionate advocates of its cause. They are the true believers and the brand's standard bearers. They have stamina, take risks and are resilient.  

Patagonia's Yvon Chouinard, Tesla's Elon Musk, and someone I had the good fortune of knowing, The Nature Conservancy's John Sawhill all fit that description. 

They speak about the brand as if it was a cause. They get people excited about achieving the brand's mission. They get people to embrace and internalize its vision. And they encourage others to join them in becoming true believers. 

Administrators keep things running. They make sure everything is operating effectively and efficiently. They meet their numbers and make sure all of the financial ratios are met. If you only hear a CEO taking about revenues, profit margins and other metrics, it is quite possible that he or she is not that visionary, inspirational leader. That does not mean that true leaders do not pay attention to the numbers - they have to - but they are motivated beyond that, by the mission and vision of the brand. And they find a way to achieve those while pursuing a sustainable business model. 

Brands and Authenticity

Patagonia is authentic. Newman's Own is authentic. Ben & Jerry's used to be authentic. But far too many brands have followed the advise of this often repeated quote, "The most important thing is honesty. Once you can fake that, you've got it made." Another version of the quote is "The secret of success is sincerity. Fake that and you're in."

I remember when BP (British Petroleum) repositioned itself as BP (Beyond Petroleum), the green energy brand. Not too long after that, the Gulf of Mexico oil spill occurred bringing to light BP's total disregard for the environment and lack of investments in green energy. 

The BP example is not atypical. Many companies have jumped on the "green," "organic," "socially responsible," and "clean energy" bandwagons. In fact, now there is even "clean coal," whatever that is. 

My wife recently encountered an automobile dealership that presented itself as "honest" and "straight shooting," with no haggling, just clearly marked prices and an unconditional guarantee of complete customer satisfaction. The dealership turned out to be anything but that. They attempted to overcharge her, tack on all sorts of hidden fees and upsell her on useless services. After she bought the car, she discovered a quirky problem that caused the car to seem as though it had a dead battery at the most inopportune times. Trying to get it repaired was a real hassle.  

While hucksters, con artists and opportunistic business people have been selling "miracle elixirs" for decades and even centuries, it doesn't help legitimate brands that are trying to make the world a better place. When one cannot discern a legitimate organic food product from a fake organic food product, it depreciates the meaning of "organic." When someone is selling fish or produce that has been frozen and shipped from an ocean away as "local," it diminishes the meaning or "locally grown" or "locally caught."

It is not only important for a brand to be authentic, it is also important for it to distinguish itself from the posers. If this is not done, it creates confusion in the marketplace and may reduce the meaning of the authentic behavior. As an example, be clear on what "organic" or "local" actually means and perhaps even create an "organic" or "local" seal that can only be used by those brands that are truly "organic" or "local."

Marketers will always try to come up with descriptors that sound legitimate and even imply a certain behavior or condition but that don't really mean much. Take for example, these claims:

• Natural farm raised meats
• Pasture raised meats
• Fresh
• Naturally grown
• Simply raised
• Nature raised
• All natural
• Responsibly grown
• Animal welfare approved
• Made with a clear conscience

In your role as a marketer or a consumer, beware of fakes posing as authentic products and brands. Help your brand and its product or service categories clearly differentiate between the "real deals" and "fakes."

Similar Product - Different Brand

I took up fly fishing a couple years ago. I have several lightweight 100% polyester long sleeve fishing shirts in my closet. They range in color from slate blue to tan, white and a shade of green. All of them are tailored in a similar fashion although some have rubber buttons while others have regular buttons. Some use VELCRO on the pockets while other use zippers. They are all made of a rip-stop weave. They all have a cape back for better breathing. Most have sleeves that can be rolled up and tied off to become short sleeved shirts. But each is a different brand purchased at a different store. One is labeled GRT from Columbia Sportswear Company. One is Field & Stream brand. And one is labeled Carhartt Force. LL Bean, Patagonia, Orvis, Worldwide Sportsman Freecast, Magellan Outdoors, Simms and several other brands offer similar shirts. 

Given that the products are designed for the same sport and are so similar with the same functionality, it made me think about how the brands themselves imbued the products with different qualities and different meanings. 

Think about how each of these may vary by brand:

• Store at which it is purchased (Tractor Supply Co., Dick's Sporting Goods, LL Bean, Field & Stream, Orvis, Macy's, etc.)
• Average price point ($35, $50, $100, $400, etc.)
• What the typical customer does outside of fly fishing (lawyer, business executive, farmer, hunter, etc.)
• What the brand itself is signaling
• Which brand says "I am one of you" the best
• Which brand is the most prestigious
• Which brand is the most true to the sport of fly fishing
• Which brand is perceived to be the most functional
• Which brand is perceived to be of the highest quality
• Which brand is perceived to be the most durable

It is interesting to think about how the appeal of very similar products varies depending on the brands that are associated with those products. This then is at the center of what branding is all about.

Brands and Baseball Caps

Brands are often used as self-expression vehicles. And baseball caps are a simple way to do this.

People use baseball caps to communicate their interests and affiliations. They use them to demonstrate their support or pride. Baseball caps can project a certain image or social status. People use them to connect with other like minded individuals. Baseball caps can also communicate personal accomplishments and personal passions.

I thought it would be fun to present you with a variety of baseball caps. Think through the type of individual who would wear each cap. What are his passions? What is he trying to communicate? Why did he buy a cap with this brand on it? What is his likely social and economic status? Will it identify him as a certain type of person? Will the baseball cap attract certain people and turn others off? What are each brand's associations? Are you familiar with some of these brands and not others? Does that say something about you? Are some of these brands insider brands? Think about how much a brand can say about a person who uses that brand as a badge.

Brand Attributes, Benefits & Values

Brands are all about differentiation. Whether one talks about a brand promising a relevant differentiated benefit or a brand's unique value proposition, it is all about differentiation.

But, how is the brand differentiating itself? Is it touting unique attributes or features?

• This is the only fully electric car with a four hundred mile range on a single charge. 
• This is the only high school in the metropolitan area that is ranked among the top 100 schools in the US.
• This is the only television channel dedicated to showing only classic movies.

Or perhaps your brand talks about functional benefits.

• This is the only golf shoe guaranteed to keep your feet dry in wet conditions.
• This is the only hiking boot that is guaranteed to last for your lifetime.
• This is the only spot remover guaranteed to remove tough mustard stains.

Or perhaps it talks about emotional or experiential benefits:

• Enjoy the freedom of the open road with our motorcycle.
• Feel the euphoria that comes with our rave.
• Savor the gooey sweetness of our candy bar.

Or perhaps it is a self-expressive benefit.

• Everyone will know you have arrived when you drive our car.
• Attending our university screams "He's a genius." 
• Everyone will know that you care about the environment if you use our products.

Or perhaps your brand shares strong values with its customers:

• We believe in conservative values.
• We really care about the environment.
• We love dogs.

Notice how the quality of the messages change as one moves from attributes and features to functional benefits to emotional and experiential benefits to self-expressive benefits to shared values. Which do you think are the most compelling? Which do you think evoke the strongest positive emotions? Which create the strongest emotional connections? Which create the most passion? Which result in the most loyalty? Which are most likely to create brand advocates?

As a marketer, when you listen to a brand's message, determine what its unique value proposition is and further, figure out whether it is focusing on attributes, benefits or values. Finally, compare that to how powerful or compelling the message seems to be.

Brands and Authenticity

“Authenticity is a collection of choices that we have to make every day. It's about the choice to show up and be real. The choice to be honest. The choice to let our true selves be seen.”
― Brené Brown, The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You're Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are

People don't like to be lied to. They don't like to be disappointed. And they don't like "phonies." People want authenticity. Consider the most recent election cycle. People are clamoring for political candidates who are sincere and really believe what they say rather than being scripted based on the latest market research or changing their stories depending on the audience. Consider how news sources now routinely "fact check" everything each political candidate says.

Consider the popularity of websites such as snopes.com, truthorfiction.com and hoaxslayer.com. There are also political fact checking websites such as factcheck.org and politifact.com. 

The number one brand personality attribute that people look for in brands is "trustworthy." This implies authenticity and transparency. 

Whether you agree with him or not, Bernie Sanders has strong grass roots support because he speaks his mind and is "real." Can you think of a political candidate who is not authentic admitting to being a Democratic Socialist in the USA today?

Patagonia wins based on its authenticity, as does Tesla. BP made a grave error in touting its "beyond petroleum" stance when it just wasn't true. 

Does choosing authenticity mean that a brand does not set strategy and create a brand position based on marketing research? No, authenticity does not rule out marketing research. Marketing research can discover what is important to customers that the brand stands for, believes in, does well  and is a part of its DNA. So the trick is to find a market to whom the brand's true self appeals so that the brand can be authentic and act with integrity. This requires introspection. Who are we? What do we believe? What do we stand for? How should we behave? What is our culture? How should we treat people? And how will this align with our target customers and what they are looking for?

Whether you approach authenticity from a brand essence exercise, a brand archetype exercise, mission, vision and values development or an organization culture project, determine what it is that your brand stands for, how it intends to behave and what will be most true to its character and then market that to the right group of customers and potential customers.

I wish you great success in creating an authentic brand.

Improving the World Through Brands

Those of us who have been entrusted with creating, growing and leveraging brands have a unique opportunity to contribute to a better world. After all, our decisions have far reaching consequences because our brands generally have very large audiences. If you had the choice of growing your brand through fear or pleasure, which path would you choose? 

I would contend that brands have always been and can increasingly become vehicles for creative expression and ushering beauty into the world. They are also sources of entertainment and a temporary escape from the demands of the day. Further, they can be sources of aspiration and inspiration.

Consider Newman's Own's charitable contributions and Dove's Real Beauty Campaign. Consider Patagonia's environmental ethic. And GEICO's ads are quite entertaining. Those ads have ushered in a whole series of entertaining ads from a variety of insurance companies.

Brands would do well to espouse values and demonstrate qualities that make them admirable. As people increasingly look to brands to serve as self-expression vehicles, brands benefit from embodying nobel qualities and standing for something admirable. 

Consider how you can lift your brand to a higher path to make the world a better place.

Great Brand Stories

People talk about creating great brand stories so I thought I would provide you with examples of some brands that I believe tell their stories well:

• Kletterwerks
• Burt's Bees
• Trader Joe's
• Patagonia
• Ben & Jerry's
• Newman's Own
• Life is Good
• Bully Hill Vineyards

Brands and Belonging

Remember the television show, Cheers? People love to spend time in a place where everyone knows their name. Churches, coffee houses, book groups, country clubs, fraternal organizations, bowling leagues, summer communities - they all create a place where people feel as though they belong. People want to be recognized and understood. They want to hang out with others who know their name, share an interest, share stories and perhaps even share the same view of the world. 

Starbucks creates its in-between place where people can relax and get to know one another. I have met several of my friends of many years at Starbucks. Orvis is a place where people who love fly fishing can hang out. The North Face is for the outdoor enthusiast. Robert Graham wants you to join their Collector's Club and Hallmark wants you to join its Hallmark Keepsake Ornament Club. Harley-Davidson owners feel an affinity for one another as do Patagonia and Tesla customers. 

Colleges and universities want their graduates to feel a lifelong affinity to their institutions and brands. They go to great lengths to create alumni associations and events. 

How is your brand creating a space or platform for people to feel as though they belong and are known? 

Purpose Driven Brands

In our over commercialized, consumer-driven world, being purpose driven is a refreshing change. Not too long ago, a new type of corporate entity emerged - B corporations. According to www.bcorporation.net, "B Corps are certified by the nonprofit B Lab to meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency." California has two corporate forms specifically designed for social enterprises, the Benefit Corporation and the Social Purpose Corporation. Other states have followed suit in developing these types of entities. The Body Shop, Newman's Own, Working Assets and similar companies were some of the first to operate out of a social conscience. I have written much about Patagonia and sustainability. Dove's Real Beauty campaign is another example of promoting positive change in the world. Life is Good focuses on spreading that message. Even Zappos focuses on "delivering happiness." And Change.org empowers people to drive positive change in the world.

Consider the advantages to organizations of being purpose driven - increased emotional connection to employees and customers, greater employee and customer loyalty, true employee and customer engagement, focus on win-win rather than win-lose, better employee morale and stronger commitment to the organization's success.

In 2014, Deloitte conducted its Core Beliefs and Culture survey. In that survey, it found that purpose driven organizations are much more likely to deliver strong growth and returns than non-purpose driven organizations.

And, here is the most important aspect of purpose driven organizations for brand managers - brand mission, vision, values, promise and positioning are central to the success of those organizations. The brand becomes the entity around which management, employees and customers rally. 

Consider transforming your organization into a purpose driven organization with a purpose driven brand.

Should Marketers Rely on the Reptilian Brain to Motivate People?

Roughly, the brain can be divided into three parts, the reptilian, the limbic and the neocortex. The reptilian brain focuses on survival and is primarily driven by fear but also includes emotions such as aggression, greed, dominance and submission. The limbic system is the emotional part of the brain and it relates pain and pleasure to activities that hurt and help you. It does this by linking particular activities to pain and pleasure in one's memory. The neocortex is the newest addition to the human brain. It controls functions such as logic, reasoning, creative thinking, language, the integration of sensory information and other higher thinking functions.

Marketers have found that people make decisions primarily based on emotions, and in particular, the emotion of fear. That is, people primarily use the reptilian and limbic parts of their brains to make decisions even if they view themselves as being highly evolved rational human beings. 

Here is what I would ask marketers to consider. Through fear-based brand messages, we continue to fan the flames of peoples' fears, fears that cause anxiety and irritability and often irrational behaviors. While this usually works, I would ask you to consider brand campaigns based on noble values - freedom, beauty, grace, kindness, compassion, joy - these sorts of things. Consider Dove's Real Beauty campaign or Patagonia's Don't Buy This Jacket campaign or even Newman's Own's All Profits to Charity approach. All three campaigns are highly successful. 

Marketers can make a positive difference in the world by helping humans move beyond the ancient reptilian brain to parts of our brains that are more aligned with how we want to evolve as a species.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Every marketer would do well to understand Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. First, people's physiological needs must be met, then their safety and security needs. Next, they need to feel as though they belong somewhere. After they have found their tribe, they seek the respect of others. When they become fully confident about their social status, they refocus their energies on achieving their highest potential, emphasizing ethics, creativity, spontaneity and other higher ideals. 

Most, but not all, brands focus on the top three rungs - love/belonging, esteem and self-actualization. Think of the brands that focus on belonging. Certain beer brands do this. Part of Harley-Davidson's brand position is the "comradeship of kindred spirits." Friends was a television show completely based on the concept of camaraderie. A significant portion of people are focused on achievement and self-esteem. Because of this, many brands primarily confer social status. Consider Mercedes-Benz, Gucci and Salvatore Ferragamo. Others are focused on self-actualization. Patagonia and Newman's Own are examples of this. Some brands straddle different needs. Tesla operates in both the esteem/social status and self-actualization rungs as does Apple. With its fun designs and high price points, Vilebrequin also straddles the esteem and self-actualization rungs. Dove's Real Beauty campaign both promotes self-esteem and an enlightened view of "real beauty," causing it to span the top two rungs of Maslow's Hierarchy. Robert Graham's tagline is "knowledge wisdom truth." This, together with its highly creative designs, places it on the self-actualization rung.

Historically, Volvo focused on a safe ride especially for family members, putting it on the safety and love/belonging rungs. Because of its price point, it was also partially on the esteem rung. With its frequent repositioning over the past decade, its owners have pushed it up more to the esteem rung.

Where does your brand operate on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs?

Patagonia and Sustainability

Patagonia has had an environmental ethos for as long as I have been aware of the brand. (I hiked in their stand-up shorts in my college days, which are long since past.) Their mantra is “reduce, repair, reuse, recycle and reimagine.” Lately, Patagonia has been urging its customers to “buy less.” Patagonia ran an ad telling people “Don’t Buy This Jacket.” They have created videos showing people how to repair used clothing and they are creating sewing kits for their customers.  They also encourage people to buy used clothing and return clothing they no longer want so Patagonia can find a new use for them. Patagonia donates 1% of its revenues to environmental causes and has set up a fund to invest in start-ups focused on sustainable food, water and energy. It makes its fleece jackets out of recycled bottles, uses only organic cotton in its cotton products, was one of the first California companies to switch to wind energy and powers its headquarters with solar panels.

In 2012, the first year of its “buy less” marketing campaign, sales increased almost one-third over the previous year as they opened 14 new stores.  Patagonia’s customers buy into and enthusiastically support its authentic environmental ethic.

(c) 2014 by Brad VanAuken, excerpted from Brand Aid, second edition, available here now.

Sources:

Dale Buss, “Patagonia Enjoys Unique Benefits of Its Authentic Sustainability Ethos,” August 29, 2013.  http://www.brandchannel.com/home/post/2013/08/29/Patagonia-Sustainable-Ethos-082913.aspx.

Kyle Stock,  “Patagonia’s ‘Buy Less’ Plea Spurs More Buying,” BloombergBusinessWeek, August 28, 2013.  http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-08-28/patagonias-buy-less-plea-spurs-more-buying.

Jennifer Elks,  “Patagonia Launces ‘Responsible Economy’ Campaign” October 1, 2013.  http://www.sustainablebrands.com/news_and_views/communications/patagonia-launches-responsible-economy-campaign