Last Friday, Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda apologized. To everyone. And he did it again on Tuesday, in the Washington Post. And again and again in a subtler way on national TV, with the currently ubiquitous “commitment” TV commercial.
There’s something refreshing about a (seemingly) heartfelt apology for mistakes made. “We screwed up,” he’s saying, “and we know it.” What’s not said but implied is obvious to parents (and consumers) worldwide: we’ve learned our lesson. Let’s fix it and move on. Maybe the ad’s a little sappy, but hey – it does a great job reminding viewers why Toyota is (still) the number one car company in the world. It’s actually heartening to see a grown-up stand up and take the heat.
After all, when’s the last time any of us saw a politician apologize with something other than crocodile tears of self-pity and shame, almost universally brought on as the result of stunning self-absorption, monumental lapses in judgment and a total lack of humility?
Perhaps it’s because humility isn’t a great brand attribute for U.S. based companies. Michael Useem, professor of management at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania was quoted recently in The New York Times saying, “American culture does not put a premium on apology.”
Maybe not. But when it comes to driving brand loyalty, I’m much more likely to open my wallet for someone who actually seems to care. Good luck, Akio. Yeah, you screwed up. But I, for one, accept your apology. Just don’t do it again…
________________________________________________
© 2010 Michael Hinshaw and MCorp Consulting. All rights reserved. This article was originally posted on Touchpoint Insights, the MCorp Consulting blog. Touchpoint Mapping®, Brand MappingSM and Loyalty Mapping® are registered trademarks of MCorp Consulting.
- login or register to post comments
- Add to a social bookmarking site
Completely disagree
As i read in a novel recently, sorry is the cheapest expression. I think it's a bit early to frame this as an example of a new brand attribute and furthermore, the people over at NHTSA would be perplexed by your conclusions since they had more to do with the apology than Toyota did.
Toyota has been dragging their feet for the past year on this issue and the NHTSA has taken unusual steps, even publicly countering Toyota's inaccurate claims on Wednesday, November 04, 2009:
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued a statement today correcting inaccurate and misleading information put out by Toyota concerning a safety recall involving 3.8 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles:
A press release put out by Toyota earlier this week about their recall of 3.8 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles inaccurately stated NHTSA had reached a conclusion "that no defect exists in vehicles in which the driver's floor mat is compatible with the vehicle and properly secured." NHTSA has told Toyota and consumers that removing the recalled floor mats is the most immediate way to address the safety risk and avoid the possibility of the accelerator becoming stuck. But it is simply an interim measure. This remedy does not correct the underlying defect in the vehicles involving the potential for entrapment of the accelerator by floor mats, which is related to accelerator and floor pan design."
I don't call that humility, but rather hubris. Poor choice Mr. Hinshaw.
Killian Schaffer
twitter/kschaffs