Final Reflection Video: https://youtu.be/akGSJ3oAbr8
week 10
11/19/2022
The Ben & Jerry’s Facebook account featured one new post in particular which caught my attention. It features a relatively new product that they’ve posted a lot about over the past few months, their Change is Brewing coffee ice cream. This particular post of this product grabbed my attention because it had a ton of interaction especially for the fact that it wasn’t the first time this flavor has been posted about on their Facebook. I immediately noticed the three hundred plus likes and the forty five comments which is more than I’ve seen on a Ben & Jerry’s Facebook post this whole time. I also noticed that the post has sixteen shares which I think definitely helped to boost interaction. I also think that posting about it outside of all their political content may have helped to promote it a bit more. I would guess that people who don’t agree with the stance that the company takes might easily brush any of their posts aside during this time regardless of what the content is.
11/15/2022
Now that Election Day has passed Ben & Jerry’s has started to post more of their usual product content again. In some of their most recent Instagram posts they took a very direct approach to communicating with their audience by addressing them directly through their captions, saying things like “Shake up your week. You deserve it,” and asking questions for followers to engage with in the comments. I think both of these things are strategic moves on the company’s part as they are trying to foster more engagement in their comments section by posing fun questions to the audience. They also took a step to try and make their posts more personal for those viewing them which in the long run I’m sure would make someone more likely to buy their products. Both of the posts that I’ve referenced are also very colorful and engaging to look at which makes it more likely that people will stop and take a second to look when it comes across their feed.
week 9
11/12/2022
Ben & Jerry’s Facebook was pretty dry this week as they definitely didn’t post as much as they did on their Instagram. They did make two posts however, both of which had an appealing cover page to catch followers attention. One post included a link to a company page with a guide for any election day questions that people may have. The post had thirty eight positive reactions which I think is pretty good for a Facebook post by Ben & Jerry’s. The second post included a cryptic caption and a link to a company page with information about a ballot question seen in five states this election. I was even more surprised to see that this one had eighty seven reactions, twenty six comments, and thirty three shares! Not all of these were necessarily positive reactions of course, but seeing the amount of interaction by consumers with the post was cool, especially on Facebook.
11/9/2022
Over the past week Ben & Jerry’s posted an Instagram reel on the company page featuring their Head of Activism, Chris talking about election money and where it comes from. In the video Chris shows viewers how they can check who the donors are in their states, who’s being donated to and how much, how politicians are getting their campaign money, and where the money is being spent. I did notice that the comments on this post were mostly positive and in support of this message and the company itself. They also made a post after Election Day highlighting some of the key results and including a cute illustration as the cover photo to catch people’s attention. I noticed that they made their caption shorter than some of their others but I think that most of what they had to communicate was likely done in the photos of the post itself.
week 8
11/4/2022
It has been interesting to see the way that Ben & Jerry’s has been using their Instagram platform to interact with their consumers this week. Over the past few days they’ve posted a series of video reels on their page, all of which are of people from the company interviewing people of color in Georgia to ask them about their experiences regarding voter suppression in their communities. I thought the videos were intriguing and it was interesting for them to interview Georgia residents and provide viewers with a first hand perspective. After seeing several comments arguing about the reality of voter suppression in a past Ben & Jerry’s post, I think it was smart of the company to provide another point of view to their audience. One of real people as opposed to the words of the company itself. I think these videos highlighted the company’s message and portrayed their opinions on the upcoming election loud and clear. It was definitely a new and unique way for this brand to do so.
11/1/2022
The Ben & Jerry’s Facebook page didn’t have a ton to offer this week as compared to past weeks. They made another recent post about another new product tailored to consumers with dietary restrictions; vegan chocolate chip cookie dough bars! They also made another post about their Change is Brewing ice cream, a popular selling point for the company recently. In combination they added a caption about the upcoming election and offered a link for consumers to find the frozen treat. One thing that I found interesting with regards to communication by their consumers was a comment that I saw on the Change is Brewing post. This commenter was very passionate in his stance on Ben & Jerry’s involvement with politics which I found curious, but even more interesting was that another consumer replied back arguing his point. I admire the way that Ben & Jerry’s uses their platform to simply get their message out there for people to see and appreciate if they want, but they never engage with the comments or participate in discourse on their social media.
week 7
10/28/2022
As Election Day is quickly approaching I noticed that Ben & Jerry’s has been posting more political content on their Facebook and Instagram pages. One thing that I found interesting was how they formulate some of their posts to be more subtle – like the one featured from Facebook with the Change is Brewing ice cream – whereas others are much more direct and to the point – like the one screenshotted from Instagram. Nonetheless, there seems to be an even mixture of positive and negative comments on both of the posts which I don’t find too surprising. I also found it interesting that the company altered their caption on the post about Georgia in their Facebook post compared to the one on Instagram. They made it shorter, more direct, and less personal. Throughout my time tracking the company I’ve found that in general they get less comments on their Facebook posts than on Instagram, and they also have more negative responses to their political posts on Facebook than Instagram. It made me curious why they alter their captions between their social media pages and whether it was done as a result of differences in communication or whether it created the differences.
10/25/2022
The two comments that I chose to focus on for one of my entries this week were left by consumers about dietary accommodations made by the company. I thought I would highlight these this week because I often see a ton of comments on Ben & Jerry’s posts requesting more gluten free, vegan, and/or non dairy options of their popular ice cream flavors. Both of these comments were very positive with one on Instagram thanking the company for making flavors that accommodate a wide variety of dietary restrictions, specifically those who are lactose intolerant. A comment that I found on a recent Facebook post noted that the company clearly states their dairy free products making it “shopper friendly” as this commenter calls it. It made me curious as to why the company didn’t respond to these comments as they had done on other comments made on the same Instagram post. However, I think merely having these positive comments on their posts reinforcing what they’re doing is a strength of the brand.
week 6
10/21/2022
In addition to Ben & Jerry’s having unique, descriptive, eye-catching, and intriguing captions on their social media posts, they also include some humor in their communication style which I personally love. I find that as a consumer even when I am just scrolling through social media with no intent to specifically look at Ben & Jerry’s posts, they always grab my attention and have a natural way of making me laugh out loud. I think this serves multiple purposes, one of which being that it keeps things interesting for people who consistently follow the company on social media. As opposed to saying the same old thing again and again like many companies do, Ben & Jerry’s tries to add some spice to their posts so that their accounts and the messages they’re sending to customers don’t seem boring or repetitive. In addition, I think it serves as another way for them to show off the kind of “silly goofy lighthearted” personality that they try to encapsulate, both in their employees as well as the company in general.
10/18/2022
This week I was sad to find that there wasn’t a lot of new content featured on either of the Ben & Jerry’s social media pages that I hadn’t seen or discussed already. However, one thing that I did notice and decided to focus on again was the captions and the descriptions that they use specifically when talking about their ice cream products. I feel that the company’s captions are a huge part of the way that they communicate with their audience and as such deserve some more attention. For Ben & Jerry’s specifically, I find that the captions and descriptions that they add to their posts are rather unique compared to other ice cream brands. I would also argue that as a result this technique makes everything that they’re promoting sound more interesting and novel even when it may not be. For me personally, the description on the front of each pint of ice cream has always been a signature Ben & Jerry’s move and something that grabs my attention right away. Taking this into consideration, I think the company is doing a great job of using social media captions as another way to do this before their customers even have the pint of ice cream right there in front of them.
week 5
10/15/2022
This week I took a closer look at Ben & Jerry’s captions on their most recent Instagram posts to get a better idea of how they communicate their brand and present themselves via social media. I found that the brand often uses a more personal tone in their captions to get their audience more interested in what they’re presenting. They also consistently use abbreviations and common slang words that are geared towards a particular audience – likely people who frequently use social media platforms. They definitely try to present themselves in a “chill” and relatable manner, since their captions are typically more casual sounding as opposed to being professionally scripted and serious sounding. I think this is definitely done on purpose since it mimics the audience that I perceive the company to have. It also represents their company in an indirect way and shows their consumers that the things their posting are there to make you laugh, smile, and/or engage in a positive way.
10/12/2022
Communication via Facebook really surprised me this week. As is typical for the brand, Ben & Jerry’s made a post with the caption, “Has your state changed its voting rules? Get ready for Election Day with this handy guide and find the info you need to cast a ballot in your state.” When I first read this post I didn’t see anything wrong with it as I didn’t think it was imposing any sort of values or trying to persuade the audience in any way other than assuring that people use their right to vote. However, it triggered someone to post one of the first real negative comments that I’ve seen on their social media to date. I thought it was interesting how the commenter perceived this post as Ben & Jerry’s trying to tell their customers “how to vote” or “how to think,” when I didn’t view it in this way at all. I think this example goes to show the ways that communication via social media is such a tricky thing to navigate because no matter what you say or post you will never be able to please everyone. Messages can easily be misunderstood and oftentimes we can’t do much about it. It did make me feel glad however, to see that Ben & Jerry’s continues to spread their message about the importance of voting despite the fact that they get comments like the one featured below.
week 4
10/8/2022
As usual, I took a look at the Ben & Jerry’s Facebook page to see what kind of communication had occurred throughout the past week. Today, I found one post in particular that had hundreds of comments, and ironically, this one didn’t include anything regarding ice cream. This post was a landscape photo featuring some of Vermont’s beautiful fall foliage surrounding Lake Willoughby. Compared to the company’s usual level of interaction in the comments section of their posts, people were going crazy over this photo. The company geniusly used this opportunity to interact with their consumers in the comments by relating to their followers about the beauty of the state, the lake, and the fall colors featured in the photo. I’m sure that in some way, this is another “move” that the company uses to their advantage. Since they are located somewhere with such beautiful fall weather and foliage, they have a unique opportunity to persuade consumers to visit their factory. The subtle nature of this persuasive tactic is definitely appealing to customers and grabbed their attention as it was intended to.
10/5/2022
The Ben & Jerry’s Instagram page didn’t feature very much interaction with the audience this past week. There were a handful of new posts from the company but each one had a rather small amount of interaction by their consumers in the comments section. Despite this, I did find that many of the new posts which did have comments were replied to in the usual positive tone that the company uses when communicating via social media which is no surprise. This got me thinking however, that this is likely an explanation as to why the company frequently changes things up in terms of what they post on their social media accounts. After following them for a few weeks I’ve found that constantly posting about only ice cream or the same flavors over and over again wouldn’t get much interaction or attention from the audience. Instead, they have to bring in some non-traditional content which may be more relevant to people’s lives today.
week 3
9/30/2022
This week I was able to find several examples of communication on Ben & Jerry’s Instagram account. The company recently put out another activism post, this time surrounding career opportunities for young people. Another recent post featured the release of another new flavor, this one specifically in partnership with Tony’s Chocolate Coloney, a slave free chocolate company. I thought these were both good examples of the indirect ways that Ben & Jerry’s communicates with their consumers. Not only do they use their social media accounts to showcase the company’s beliefs and values, but they also give customers a glimpse at where their money is being directed, and provide reasons to support why they should spend their money on Ben & Jerry’s ice cream as opposed to other brands. Of course, the company also keeps up with day to day direct communication with their consumers by replying to a handful of comments on each post as well. The more subtle moves however are very interesting to me and definitely something I want to keep paying attention to in the coming weeks.
9/27/2022
When I took a look at the company’s Facebook account this week I was somewhat surprised to see the lack of comments on one of their recent posts. This particular post was announcing the company’s five year anniversary of their partnership with a local program, Milk with Dignity, this one dedicated to the rights of dairy workers in New York and Vermont. Although there wasn’t very much interactive communication in the posts’ comment section, people did respond in other ways by “liking” or “loving” the post using some of the pre established communication tools on Facebook. I found this to be an interesting observation because it seems that more political based or activism based posts get more attention over on Instagram, but Facebook followers typically only respond to Ben & Jerry’s posts about specific ice cream flavors or other products. This makes me wonder how much the company is aware of their audience on either platform and if they do this move specifically to target the younger following that they likely have on Instagram as compared to Facebook.
week 2
9/23/2022
Later on in the week I took a look at Ben & Jerry’s Facebook to see if I could find some more interactive communication on a different platform. Although there weren’t a ton of comments on their Facebook posts from this past week there were a few comments that I found intriguing. Firstly, there was a lengthy comment on one post about dietary restrictions and the company not being inclusive to a wider variety of them. Although the company didn’t reply to this comment in particular, they did post a reply to another customer’s concern, in which the commenter said that they couldn’t find their favorite flavor anywhere. The company addressed the issue directly by providing the commenter with a link to their ‘Flavor Locator’ to help them locate the nearest location carrying the product. I found this interaction to be interesting as well because although the reply addressed the concern, it’s definitely another ‘move’ that they use, as it will make them more profit in the end. I found it interesting however that they didn’t reply to the person who commented previously regarding gluten, as this is definitely a common concern for consumers of particular food brands.
9/19/2022
This week I checked out Ben & Jerry’s Instagram page again in hopes of finding some more examples of their consumer and company interactions. Although there wasn’t a ton of back and forth between the company and their consumers throughout the last week, there was a recent post which caught my attention. The post featured a newly (re)introduced flavor, “Change is Brewing”, in addition to some in person activism from the company itself. In collaboration with another company, Black Voters Matter, Ben & Jerrys used the rerelease of this popular flavor as a way to promote a smaller organization while also showing their support once again for specific political issues. Ben & Jerrys was sure to make their social media announcement very engaging for their followers by including several pictures from their live event. Taking a look at the comments I saw that there were definitely a lot of positive responses and reactions to the post. This move is something that I think Ben & Jerrys does very well that strengthens their online communication. Not only do they tell their audience that they share many of the same concerns as them, but they also show their involvement first hand through their social media platforms.
week 1
9/17/2022
I also took a look at the Ben & Jerry’s Facebook account to see how they interacted with consumers on another platform. Much of the interaction and what they posted was very similar if not identical. However, I was able to find some communication between consumers and the company that I hadn’t come across on Instagram. Although there were some comments with customer concerns that hadn’t yet been addressed, a common concern on one of their posts was a lack of ingredients in one of their ice cream flavors. The company kept their positive and upbeat attitude in replying to customers and offered them a free replacement pint in many cases.
9/11/2022
For my blog project I decided to follow Ben & Jerry’s on various social media platforms to investigate how they interact with their consumers and critics. The tone of the company’s voice is overall very positive and uplifting. I’ve noticed that this is especially true when Ben & Jerry’s replies back to comments on their posts. The company typically seems to mimic the tone of voice or the type of lingo that their followers use, likely meant to strengthen their communication with their audience. I’ve also noticed that Ben & Jerry’s often doesn’t directly address big concerns of customers should they get a complaint on one of their posts. However, more positive or lighthearted suggestions commented by followers are often responded to in a friendly lighthearted manner. This ‘move’ is something that I see frequently on social media so Ben & Jerry’s is definitely not alone in this. I’ve found that if there is a large enough outcry for the company to address a customer’s concern they will often brush it off and offer something in return to make the situation seem less serious. Although I haven’t seen huge scandals on social media regarding Ben & Jerry’s specifically, it’s interesting to see that they use similar techniques to address public concerns and suggestions. This company also often goes out of their way to post about current events and political topics that are important to them but also affect their customers, a hallmark of the brand in my opinion. Below I screenshotted a post that they made on September 1st surrounding student activists and racial profiling issues. This ‘move’ is definitely one they do frequently to remind their customers of the values that they hold and likely share with many regular consumers.
