How Jeni’s Splendid Ice-Cream Creates Believers (not just customers)
Jeni’s Splendid Ice-Cream is one of the most expensive brands in the category by the pint and they have an audience of believers, not just customers.
Last week, I wrote about how they win on quality and innovation. Today, let’s dive deep into the psychology of their customer acquisition.
This is a series called “How expensive becomes worth it” - dissecting the anatomy of premium pricing.
If you’re new here…Welcome! I’m Neysa - an executive coach and culture strategist. I work with leaders in an advisory capacity to help them make the right call for their teams. When you’re ready to turn these insights into tangible next steps for your brand, schedule a 30-minute gut check. It’s totally free.
Jeni’s has a different relationship with their customer base. While most brands are chasing temporary moments of visibility, Jeni’s was in pursuit of a deeper relationship with their audience. They invested major marketing dollars into their collaboration with NYC based artist CJ Hendry to create the Opaque limited edition pint. They opened up a pop-up store just for the weekend selling only the Opaque ice-cream in NYC with lines around the block.
Contrary to their typical bright, fun, and bubbly aesthetic, the Opaque Ice-cream is dark, literally the color black, and moody. CJ also did a Willy Wonka Style sketch release that promised one of her most valuable pieces to the buyer who happened to receive her famous Black ice scream scoop sketch. This is unlike any other collaboration that’s existed. Mixing the ice-cream world with the fine-arts world. Mixing fun, family friendly energy with cool, edgy city energy …and it worked.
One year later, they re-released the Opaque ice-cream proving that engaging with your audience directly and creating memorable experiences for them will always win over temporary moments of virality via an influencer or a local creator who discovered the brand.
The take-away for you is this - find a meaningful way to provide an unforgettable experience for your customers. It can happen in-store, in a pop-up setting, or even in the homes of your customers. It doesn’t have to last forever to create a lasting experience. Even to the folks who might miss out will still talk about it. The collective talk about the brand wins over one major voice advocating for the brand.
