February 1, 2010. I woke up as my friend shouted, “Oh my God. They stole everything.”

The $2,000 dollar camera, cash and personal documents she had locked in her car were gone. I was scared because her car was parked in my driveway.

We traced the foot prints. The thieves came in through an opening in the bushes at the bottom of our property.

For the next month, every small noise activated my adrenaline.

March 19, 2010. We installed a fence. I feel safe again.

The Advertising Lesson

Customers erect fences when they have a bad experience with a brand. Saying, “I’ll never do that again,” makes them feel safe.

If this happens on a large scale (like a recall), the advertiser better make sure they’re not that anymore.

The logo needs to change; it’s a symbol of the old that. The product or whatever caused the problem needs to change. Changes should be communicated over… and over… and over… to the customer. If not, the advertiser will likely be fenced out.