Jamba’s new, refined web pages tell the story of healthy living
Restaging who you are unlocks the door to prosperity and growth
By Bob Wheatley
When I say Jamba Juice most likely your mind turns to fruit smoothie outlet. So is a Jamba store essentially four walls with some blenders and pureed fruit in a cup? For a period of time in their history it may well have been. The word healthy loosely attached to the brand persona and a bright, colorful, fun atmosphere to deliver some fruity refreshment. So far so good, but if candor is applied, the picture was fair financially. Some questioned the long-term value proposition on a business that seemed to straddle the trench between beverage and treat…
Here’s another layer of candor: Emergent now represents Jamba so we have our hands deeply in the pool of change at this dynamic company.
Consumer behavior generally goes like this: we think category first and brand second. So when considering fruit smoothie beverage, most people get to thinking of Jamba in a hurry. That’s good, right? Yes it is. But if we’re thinking more fully and deeply about people, how they relate to brands these days and what constitutes a healthy relationship, then the whole dynamic starts to look a bit different. Cup half empty, or half full…?
Enter the magic, and the possibilities!
As with many businesses, you could look at Jamba, it’s origin and products, and say, well the path forward is to innovate new flavors. Yep. That’s one way to see it. But if we’re paying attention to the world as it changes, you’ll notice a thunderous roar of consumers en masse running towards a new way of thinking about what they eat and drink.
Behold, America has discovered you are what you eat. And, that what you consume has a direct impact on your health and wellbeing. We’re also seeing the emergence of “symbolic choices” in brand preference – as consumers filter preferred products based upon their assessment if brand “A” or “B” fits their desire to do something good for themselves, and thus stay in control of their happiness and wellbeing.
That, my friends, is opportunity knocking — loudly. Fast forward — magic is taking place at Jamba! What’s happening you ask? The company is in full march through a transition from smoothie purveyor to healthy lifestyle brand.
Seems like a logical fit, right? Sure. But the impact of this, properly orchestrated is profound. And constitutes a compelling example to other organizations of what can happen when you decide to adjust the strategic formula and follow this transformational piece of wisdom:
Change your mission; change how you see your world, and in doing so add a new form of value to who and what you are. Result: an incredibly significant and upward move of the brand value proposition. In Jamba’s case from simple fruit refreshment to habitual partner in the life-long road to improved wellbeing and health.
Jamba just announced their first quarter earnings, up 3.6 percent over last year’s outstanding performance. What’s driving this? Plenty. New products, new categories, new marketing, new business channels – but most of all a new way of thinking about what Jamba is. And all the “new” falls from a solid anchor of purpose and meaning that helps drive decisions on asset investments.
What’s happened is an alignment, a shift to considering a new kind of relationship with consumers based on lifestyle relevance, on partnering with people on their journey to make improvements in their health and wellbeing. Jamba quickly starts to “matter” in a whole new way. And mattering is really the game.
Have you made similar moves? Tell us.