Paper Bag

Last night I was having Chipotle with my teenage son (a regular occurrence) and instead of his phone, he was so interested in reading the paper bag that held his food. When he asked me for my bag so he could read it, I had to see what was so engaging. After reading the bags, I realized that Chipotle was creating and communicating its brand story to further connect with its primary customers. Each bag tells a story about one year in the brand's twenty-five year history and how they are always working to make the best products for its customers from sourcing local ingredients to creating vegetarian options.

What a clever yet simple idea, and one that doesn’t take a huge investment of time or money. Your brand story whether directed at consumers or businesses must not only be communicated in a unique and refreshing way to your customers, but it also must be an on-going conversation that happens from paper bags to social media to larger arenas. Business-to-Business companies need to take a page from consumer-focused companies’ playbooks and identify their customers’ interests and problems to form lasting impressions and connections.