Latest / Brand Storytelling with Fexingo: Narrative, Mission, and Stories That Sell / How Ben and Jerry's Built a Brand on Ice Cream Activism
Transcript
- Lucas: Luna, you've probably noticed that more brands are taking political stands these days. But Ben & Jerry's has been doing that for decades, and the really interesting part is how they turned their social mission into a product strategy. Luna: Yeah, I mean they were literally founded with a mission statement that includes social justice. But how do you take something fuzzy like 'activism' and make it sell ice cream? Lucas: That's the genius. They don't just write checks — they embed the activism into the product itself. Take the 2015 'Save Our Swirled' flavor. It was a raspberry and marshmallow ice cream with a swirl of caramel and chocolate peace signs. The entire point was to rally support for the People's Climate March. Luna: Right, they literally named a flavor after an activist slogan. And people bought it, not just because it tasted good, but because eating it felt like a statement. Lucas: Exactly. And that's the core insight. Ben & Jerry's figured out that if you align the product with a value that matters to your customer, you build a different kind of loyalty. It's not just about the ingredients — it's about identity. Luna: But doesn't that risk alienating half your customers? Ice cream is supposed to be universal. Lucas: It does risk it. But their data shows the opposite. Since they started taking stands in the 80s — opposing the dairy hormone rBST, supporting marriage equality, racial justice — their revenue has grown more consistently than the category average. In 2020, during the Black Lives Matter protests, they actually saw a sales spike after releasing a statement supporting the movement. Luna: So there's a segment of consumers who actively seek out brands that share their values. And Ben & Jerry's has become a proxy for that. Lucas: Precisely. And they back it up with numbers. Seven point five percent of pretax profits goes to social causes. They source Fair Trade ingredients. They even have a board structure — set up when Unilever acquired them in 2000 — that protects the social mission from being overridden by profit motives. Luna: Tell me about that board structure. Because most acquisitions kill the mission, or at least dilute it. Lucas: Ben & Jerry's has an independent board of directors that has veto power over major decisions that might violate their three-part mission: product, economic, and social. That board includes outside activists and community leaders. It's rare and it's real. Luna: So Unilever can't just tell them to stop being political if it hurts the bottom line. That's huge for authenticity. Lucas: Exactly. And it shows up in their flavors. Pecan Resist was a direct response to the Trump administration's policies. Justice ReMix'd was a rebrand of a flavor to raise awareness about criminal justice reform. The product is the protest. Luna: But what about a flavor that's purely commercial? Like Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. Is there a hidden mission there? Lucas: Not every flavor has a social angle. But many do. And even the ones that don't benefit from the halo effect. Customers trust the brand, so they're more willing to try new flavors. It's a permission structure. Luna: That's a good term. Permission structure. You're saying that activism gives customers permission to indulge because they feel like they're supporting a good cause? Lucas: Partly. But more importantly, it gives them something to talk about. Ben & Jerry's generates free media coverage every time they launch a new politically charged flavor. The press writes about it, people share it on social — it's earned media that costs them nothing but the ingredient cost. Luna: And it keeps their customers engaged without having to run constant ads. The brand story becomes the advertising. Lucas: Right. And that's where the real lesson is for marketers. You can create a brand narrative that's bigger than the product itself. But it has to be authentic. Ben & Jerry's has been doing this since 1978. The founders, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, were activists before they were businessmen. It's not a marketing stunt — it's identity. Luna: So if a brand today wants to replicate that, they can't just pick a cause and slap a hashtag on it. Lucas: Not if they want it to last. You have to embed it in the business model. The ingredient sourcing, the profit allocation, the board structure. Otherwise it's performative. And consumers — especially younger ones — can smell performative a mile away. Luna: Ben & Jerry's has also shown that you can be consistently political without being partisan. They've supported liberal causes, but also issues that cross party lines, like climate change. And they've been willing to take hits. Remember when they got boycotted over the marriage equality support? Lucas: Yeah, that happened. But they didn't back down. And within a few years, public opinion shifted. Now marriage equality is widely accepted. The brand was ahead of the curve. Luna: That's the risk-reward calculation. If you're ahead of the curve, you alienate some today, but you capture loyalty from the future. And Ben & Jerry's had the stomach for it. Lucas: Absolutely. And it's worth noting that they aren't perfect. They've faced criticism for not being radical enough, for being too corporate. But by and large, they've maintained trust because the mission is operational, not just rhetorical. Luna: So what's the takeaway for a brand that wants to start using storytelling for a cause? Where do they begin? Lucas: I'd say start with what your company actually does. For Ben & Jerry's, it's ice cream. So they use the flavor names, the ingredients, the packaging to tell the story. If you're a software company, maybe it's your supply chain or your hiring practices. Find the lever that's authentic to your product. Luna: And be prepared to lose some customers. That's the part most brands are afraid of. Lucas: But the ones you gain are worth more. They buy more often, they recommend you more, they forgive your mistakes. That's the loyalty dividend. Luna: I'm thinking about the authenticity question from the listener's perspective. When we talk about brand stories on this show, we try to keep it grounded. And it occurs to me that the reason we can do that is because we don't have advertisers telling us what to say. Lucas: That's exactly it. We keep this show ad-free because we believe the story should speak for itself. If these marketing conversations have sparked something you've actually used in your work or your thinking, and you want to support that independence, you can find us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Luna: Yeah, it's a small way to keep the content free of any outside influence. We appreciate it. Lucas: So, back to Ben & Jerry's. I think one of the most fascinating recent moves is how they handled the pandemic. They didn't just say 'we support frontline workers' — they actually gave away free ice cream to hospitals and tied it to their existing mission of social justice. Luna: Right, they distributed over a million pints to healthcare workers. And they framed it as an extension of their commitment to community, not just a one-off PR gesture. Lucas: And that's the key. Every action, whether it's a new flavor, a donation, or a public statement, is connected back to the same narrative thread. That's what makes a brand story durable. Luna: So if I was a marketer at a small company listening to this, I'd want to know: can I do this on a smaller scale? Do I need a board structure and a billion-dollar parent? Lucas: Not at all. You can start small. Pick one cause that aligns with your product and your team's values. Donate a percentage of sales from a specific product line. Or commit to sourcing one ingredient ethically. Then tell that story consistently. Over time, it builds. Luna: And you don't have to be as overtly political as Ben & Jerry's. Some brands choose quieter activism, like supporting local communities. The point is to be authentic. Lucas: Exactly. The worst thing you can do is pick a cause just because it's trending. That's when it feels like a marketing stunt. Ben & Jerry's succeeds because their activism predates the trend. They were doing it when it was unpopular. Luna: That's a good note to end on. Authenticity means being early, not loud. Lucas: And being willing to stay when it's hard. That's how you build a brand story that sells — not just a pint of ice cream, but an idea.