In the early days of Chipotle, CMO Mark Crumpacker focused on touting the company's "food integrity," but he quickly learned this wouldn't get him as many long-term customers as he thought.
On a panel today at Fast Company's Innovation Uncensored event in New York City, Crumpacker admitted that he had overestimated how much people care about animals and the environment.
"It turned out to essentially not be true," Crumpacker said. "Only 20 to 30 percent of those people actually care about that stuff."
He quickly learned that telling people how conscious Chipotle was didn't give the company the marketing results it needed, so, instead, Chipotle shifted its focus.
People weren't going to be engaged on their own — Chipotle had to provide content that would get them interested in food integrity itself.
For instance, Chipotle hosts food festivals, has a music label (with only one song so far) and is in the process of making a documentary film. They all relate to the issue of where people's food comes from.
When asked who he'd like to see on a panel, Crumpacker pointed to "Family Guy" creator Seth MacFarlane and the minds behind "South Park," Trey Parker and Matt Stone, because they've mastered the art of dropping serious issues right into the minds of the public.
