In today’s world, we are fascinated by reality & authenticity.  Reality TV, YouTube @home stars, etc…we all want more authenticity.  Indeed, authenticity is a key buzz word in the new marketing world.  People long to connect with other authentic people.  People want to buy authentic products…and people want to work for authentic companies.

Fakers

Consumers currently in their consumption prime (esp. Gen Xers) crave authenticity because they are just plain sick of fakers and shakers in their lives.  Too many “personality first” politicians have been exposed. Enron + Worldcom and other blockbuster scandals have only added salt onto the wounds of the consumer psyche.  Trust in anyone and anything is simply at an all-time low.

Was the “Personality Ethic” partially to blame?

Did the years of personality-ethic driven training within the success literature lead us astray?  As Steven Covey notes in his landmark book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, the post WWI success literature put the slick, image driven personality ethic ahead of the character ethic.   Maybe the recent extreme interest in authenticity signals that the era of the personality ethic is coming to an end...Social media side note: Steven Covey has just launched an online community site called the Steven R. Covey community.  He even has a blog–which I only recently discovered–sadly, it seems that there has not been a post since May 08, which means it is probably abandoned)

You just can’t get away:

Now, almost every institution and every person is subject to the new era of micro-reporting.  Blogging, micro-blogging, camera phones, i-Reporting, Google, you name it…it is all out there.  And if your secrets are not out there yet, they will be soon.   If we thought we could get away using personality driven tactics, smile solutions…and “lipstick on a pig” marketing, we were wrong.  This is especially true in the new world of “Green marketing”.  Just as companies began sensing the rising consumer concern for the environment and Greener consumption, savvy consumers started pushing back against the deluge of Greenwashing.

Reality Products?:

So, what are companies doing about all of this?  One example I recently saw that really blew me away was Patagonia’s Footprint Chronicles.  While companies around the globe are trying to figure out how best to maneuver in the burgeoning Green revolution, Patagonia is taking bold steps to lead the way.  Patagonia’s Footprint Chronicles actually tracks and openly EXPOSES the environmental impact of Patagonia’s products via a unique website.  What I found interesting about this very transparent website was that Patagonia openly discusses the good, the bad, and the ugly of its own global supply chain.   Indeed, this move boldly and strategically elevates the idea of reality and transparency within the enterprise.  Will Patagonia’s amazingly deep level of openness usher in a new expectation for Global Firms?  Or, will Patagonia struggle to answer some of the questions that are now being raised about its supply chain…ultimately bogging itself down operationally?  Could this even create a PR nightmare if Patagonia cannot better explain what it is doing differently to reduce its environmental footprint?

Whatever the outcome, you have to applaud the risk taking and green leadership at Patagonia.  Right now, Patagonia is exposing 15 “Reality Products” to naked eye scrutiny.  Will they stop there?

What do you think about this reality product trend?

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