New Toyota Campaign Lets Consumers Decide Company’s Future

When a company tarnishes its relatively sterling reputation amongst consumers, it can take a lot of time (and money) to win back its stature. So Toyota has found a shortcut: challenging consumers to instead spend their time (and maybe money) to help polish the automaker’s image.

As reported by Stuart Elliott of the New York Times, the new Toyota campaign:

continues on the journey to repair its reputation with a campaign using the theme “Ideas for good,” which will seek suggestions from consumers. The campaign, to be introduced on Monday, invites consumers to come up with new ways to use five existing Toyota Motor technologies.

The Times also reports that the Japanese company was “the only major automaker to suffer a sales decline in the United States compared with the same month last year.” For those with short memories, a series of recalls questioned the brand’s reputation for making reliable cars.

The new effort not only lets consumers suggest new ideas to Toyota, but also lets them vote for which suggestions they think should be brought to life, a wish the company will fulfill after the “community voting” period ends next year. The move — to defer directly to consumers rather than market research and focus groups — is a safe way to reclaim its image. Since the aftermath of The Gap’s rebranding (or, for the historically minded, the New Coke experiment) proved that consumers always have the final say, perhaps more companies should give their loyalists the first say.

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