By G+ Author: Erin Washington.
Last Tuesday August 6, The Shake Shack used twitter to announce the introduction of their new fries, moving away from the traditional crinkle cut fries to fresh cut fries. What came next was a barrage of fan tweets condemning the switch. In fact, if you head to their Twitter page now fans are still letting their opinion be known.
Introducing new product, changing an existing offering or simply rebranding can be a tough exercise, no amount of research will be able to tell you exactly how fans will react, or whether it will be positive or negative. For example; in 2010 Gap attempted to change their logo and were hit with a “whirlwind to negative responses”, eventually resulting in a retreat back to the original logo from the clothing giant.
Shake Shack have handled the backlash perfectly. They’ve stuck to their choice and responded to fans opinions in a light-hearted way, even gently putting some fans in their place when they get a bit too feisty – showcasing their belief in the change.
The Shake Shack story is a great example of how to handle a rebrand – stand by your decision and maintain consistency with your message, and eventually your fans will too.
Source: Social Media Today
