Polarizing brands get talked about. Ask the person next to you, “Windows or Mac?” and you’re bound to get an opinion. Brands with a fanatic following often have an equally fanatic opposition. But what happens when you embrace your haters?
In the case of Locally Laid, an egg producer in the mid-west, they took an opportunity to turn hate mail into an educational opportunity. Faced with an incensed grocery store shopper, upset about the company’s name and the price of their product, Locally Laid saw an opportunity. They wrote a wonderfully crafted, educational, and balanced response. Here’s an excerpt:
Here’s why we named our company, Locally Laid. First off, it’s completely demonstrative of what we are. We are the first pasture-raised egg company in the Upper Midwest providing you with eggs which are laid locally. More on the sassy part of the name in minute, but let’s look at local. It’s important.
The average food product in this country travels some 1,500 -2,000 miles from farmer to processor to distributor to your plate. That’s a lot of diesel burned and C02 pumped in the air. Our cartons travel a fraction of those miles. We’ve turned down lucrative contracts that would have taken our eggs out of the area because of our environmental stance. Plus, we plant a tree with every delivery we make to offset our minimal carbon footprint…
…Locally Laid is directly challenging the egg industry status quo. We move fences all spring, summer and fall, and fill waterers and feeders; it’s incredibly demanding work to get birds out of doors. And it all costs more.
However, we believe it’s worth it. Hens that forage and exercise on fresh pasture lay eggs with less fat and cholesterol and stronger yolk integrity…
This is a brand that knows itself and knows what it stands for. They don’t merely raise chickens, they rear “Poultry Athletes.” They sell cheeky T-Shirts proudly emblazoned with the “Locally Laid” moniker and the subhead “Local Chicks are Better” to support their farm. Soon they’ll release a book about their journey. And in the meantime, they’ve educated us. Not only about our food system, animal welfare, community agriculture, and economics. But also about creating and sticking to a great brand story, no matter what your haters say.
