Ben and Jerry’s … the Best of the Best in Social Commerce?

There is a spiritual aspect to our lives — when we give we receive — when a business does something good for somebody, that somebody feels good about them.

- Ben Cohen

Whether we are discussing businesses that are social, the best at engaging customers, or being great at social commerce, there are few businesses in the class of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream. (We define social commerce as commerce that uses online media to support social interaction to assist in online buying and selling).

It is interesting to note that they have always been very good at this skill … but they have gotten better since being purchased several years ago by Unilever.

Being social is a core component of Ben and Jerry’s marketing strategy. It is the integrating ingredient of their online and online to traditional marketing/media.

What makes this company so good at social commerce and being social? Here are our thoughts on this question:

It starts with showing appreciation

… for their customers. The quote above from Ben Cohen says it all about their culture and success at showing customers appreciation.

Interactive customer engagement

… is a high priority for the brand and they continually look for new ways to collect inputs from customers. A good current example is their ‘Scoop Truck,’ which travels around the country giving out samples of new products and soliciting customer inputs.

They use customer collaboration

… to obtain customer ideas on new flavors. Fans inspired the best-selling Cherry Garcia, Chunky Monkey, and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough flavors.

Ben and Jerry’s brand has always chosen a social mission

… to stand for and stand behind. Currently, they are supporting the push to get corporate dollars out of politics … www.getthedoughout.org

Not all businesses can go to the extent that Ben and Jerry’s does. But they can support local issues and do weekly online promotions to increase customer engagement, gain new customers, and convert good customers into advocates.

Mike Schoultz is the founder of Digital Spark Marketing, a digital marketing and customer service agency. With 40 years of business experience, he consults on and writes about topics to help improve the performance of small business. Find him on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.