As a result of tariff trade wars, tough-talk rhetoric and changes to long-held alliances, nationalism is rising. Very quickly. We are already seeing Canadian liquor stores remove U.S. products from shelves, and “anti-American sentiment” be mentioned in financial statements. More consumer pressure is coming.
Have cross-border brands and organizations seen this type of consumer nationalism before? Sort of. In recent years, U.S. brands like Apple and Nike faced boycotts from China consumers; McDonald’s and SodaStream faced boycotts related to the conflict in the Middle East; Chinese brands have faced similar downward pressure here in the U.S. However, current examples like these are born of cultural nationalism where consumers react to perceived slights based on values or beliefs.
This time around may feel differently for companies. In addition to cultural nationalism, consumers are “voting with their wallets” on a bedrock of economic nationalism, to play a part in protecting a domestic industry, jobs and economy. And then there’s good ol’ national pride, a form of civic nationalism to buy goods and patronize services from your motherland’s offerings — flag-waving through a purchase bell.
What does this mean for clients today? It means that U.S. clients that provide products and services to other countries may experience a sales downturn at a minimum, or outright boycotts at worst. The same could be said of foreign companies doing business here.
What should clients do now to prepare? Actual steps may differ from client to client, but here’s a few things we would recommend, in priority order:
1. Assess the relative risk. Clients need to audit their brands/products/services to gauge how “national” their industry, company and products/services/brands are considered to an overseas audience. This goes for U.S. companies doing business abroad and overseas companies doing business here. If they need research done on this, our M Booth specialists can help.
2. Engage an issues-management group. If one exists, assemble them now. If one doesn’t exist — this is the time to build a cross-functional team to ensure there is strategic alignment between sales, marketing, social media, communications, production, distribution, and more. Building one and having an inaugural meeting is not hard. If clients need help on this, our issues & crisis management team can support and facilitate the first meeting.
a. The group can begin addressing the rest of these recommendations below. Most importantly, it must decide strategically the pros/cons of appealing to broad consumers (e.g., “our products are made in the markets we service,” or “regardless of our HQ, we have always had a multinational mindset and employ around the world.”) Keep in mind, this positioning may have a negative reaction from domestic politicians and consumers.
b. This group can also be the focal point between HQ communications and regional/national communications if the company has multi-national operations. There should be some form of hub-and-spoke to ensure consistency of purpose and communications across borders.
3. Centralize the flow of information. All boycott-related monitoring and analysis should come to a centralized team. All relevant actions and communications should emanate from that same team to ensure consistency and alignment with business goals.
4 .Revisit marketing/advertising goals and tone. Based on the strategy in 2a. above, the organization should review recent and current marketing campaigns, including how it is positioned on social, through influencers and via any promotions or partnership programs. And as referenced in 2b. above, there also needs to be a congruence of goals/strategy from country to country, even if the message and tactics are slightly different.
If you have questions or need help, please reach out to JamesD@mbooth.com, EVP, Issues & Crisis.
