Cracker Barrel really stepped in it with its redesign, and customers haven't been shy about telling them that its characterless new logo lacks the charm that the previous one had.
As I reported last week, the bland redesign was the result of Cracker Barrel caving to leftist pressure and adopting "expert" opinions and putting people in leadership roles that didn't have the company's best interests at heart. This includes BlackRock, which owns 3.23 million shares in the company. BlackRock is notorious for taking brands and making them awful with social justice messaging and agenda-first sales tactics.
Read: The Disastrous Cracker Barrel Rebrand Finally Gets an Explanation and It Will Surprise No One
Fast-forward to now, and the Cracker Barrel disaster has become a big topic of conversation, not just because of the rebrand being the next big corporate mistake in a long line of corporate mistakes, but because the purpose behind the rebrand was to diminish its Southern character, which modern "experts" say is offensive to too many people.
As Rusty Weiss reported, Donald Trump even weighed in, but instead of slapping Cracker Barrel around a bit, he offered a very good piece of advice.
"Cracker Barrel should go back to the old logo, admit a mistake based on customer response (the ultimate Poll), and manage the company better than ever before," he wrote. "They got a Billion Dollars' worth of free publicity if they play their cards right. Very tricky to do, but a great opportunity. Have a major News Conference today," added Trump. "Make Cracker Barrel a WINNER again."
Read: Trump Sends a Message to Cracker Barrel After Woke Rebrand Backfires: ‘Admit a Mistake’
The important part is when Trump called the "customer response" the "ultimate poll."
What's really strange is that many corporations have just forgotten this, and it's a very common problem. Customers will lash out at a company for a decision, and instead of considering the decision and making changes accordingly, you'll often see corporations double down and defend things they've done, costing them millions, if not billions of dollars. Dick's Sporting Goods, Gillette, Disney, all corporations that decided it was better to go woke and lose ungodly amounts of money than just say "hey, we screwed up."
To Cracker Barrel's credit, they did release a statement to that effect, but now the follow-through needs to happen. Revisions should be done, and if they are, I can see Cracker Barrel regaining some of its customers.
But I think every corporation needs to listen to Trump here. He's not wrong at all. Customers are still always right. "Experts," meanwhile, have more of a mixed track record.
A really solid example of this is JCPenney.
Back in 2011, the retail store would hire Ron Johnson, the man behind Apple's slick look and retail success. This is the man behind the minimalist appearance that made Apple stores look more high-tech and futuristic. A great decision for the brand to be sure, and JCPenney wanted to have that same kind of success with a new look for their stores.
The issue is that JCPenney shoppers aren't Apple shoppers, and for all of Johnson's expertise, he never stopped to consider that for even a moment.
Johnson got rid of a lot of JCPenney staples such as coupons, doorbusters, and the constant sales, as he saw it as a cheap look. He threw all that in the trash and went with the "everyday low prices" angle, then redesigned the stores to look more modern and upscale.
He didn't test any of this on JC Penney's customers, didn't run any focus groups, and just relied on himself and his high-paid consultants to know what was best. As it turns out, these "experts" didn't know anything, and that soon came surging to the surface as JCPenney customers responded angrily to the updates.
The results were a 29 percent loss in sales, or a billion dollars for that year. The company also lost half its share value.
Ron Johnson, the Apple expert, was fired after only 17 months on the job.
If only they'd just asked the customers first, this all could've been avoided, but the need to hear out the "experts" ruled out the common sense of the boardroom.
To Trump's point, however, being down doesn't mean being out. Listening to customer feedback can take you out of the mud and into the stratosphere. That's also happened on a few occasions, too, but one of the most popular examples involves a blue hedgehog that's "gotta go fast."
Back in 2019, a trailer debuted for the new "Sonic the Hedgehog" movie, and for those who've been Sonic fans at any point in their lives, the design was nightmarish to say the least, and the fans let the film's creators know. Director Jeff Fowler took the audience feedback and went back to the drawing board, creating a far more accurate Sonic design.
The redesign ultimately cost the film an extra $5 million, which ended up being a small price to pay for goodwill from the fans, who ended up making the Sonic movies into a successful franchise. The third installment of the Sonic movies alone brought in almost $500 million on a $122 million budget. Suddenly, that $5 million doesn't seem such a bad investment.
The customers were listened to, and Sonic is one of those franchises that actually succeeded in the age where franchises declined.
Food for thought.
