What a Trip to Chuck E. Cheese’s Reminded Me about Brands and Branding
Written on May 1st, 2009 by John Long
Written on May 1st, 2009 by John Long
Chuck-E-Cheese
While staying with his Grandma and Grandpa a few months ago, my son, 3, was treated to his first trip to Chuck E. Cheese’s. And he loved it. I don’t know exactly what he liked so much, specifically, since I wasn’t there. But he was so enamored by the experience that, even months after his only visit, he was still playing with the branded game tokens and the Chuck E. Cheese’s plastic cups he kept. And pretty regularly, he would say, “I want to go to Chucky Cheese.”
Now that’s pretty good branding. After only a single visit, the name, some simple collateral, the brand experience–all of this had made quite an impression on Allen. Branding works!
So last weekend, after his 3,679th request to go back to Chuck E. Cheese’s, I finally relented, and we visited one locally.
Half the games didn’t work. A good chunk of the others ate our tokens. It was crowded. It was dirty. It was dark. The Chuck E. Cheese’s band wasn’t playing. I certainly wasn’t having much fun, but Allen seemed mostly happy, if not a little subdued by the end. Then we got to the parking lot and he said quietly, “I don’t like Chucky Cheese.” Oops. The branding had done its job–but the brand itself had failed. I was reminded, in that moment, of Marty Neumeier says about brands in The Brand Gap. “A brand is not what you say it is. It’s what they say it is.” Exactly.
Even the most effective branding only reinforces the personal experience of the products and services brands produce. Great branding gets them there, and reminds them to go back. Great brands keep them coming back for more.
The silver lining for Chuck E. Cheese’s–and branding–is that Allen’s first experience was so positive that he still wants to go back. The tokens and the cups and the name are still doing their jobs. This is true with brands, generally–first impressions matter a lot.
We’ll go back soon, but we’ll go to another location.
Don’t blow it, Chucky.
Christine Jones wrote: Loved this. Lived this. Long is absolutely right!
Sunday, March 21st 2010 at 6:09 pm |Lucy Anderson wrote: Laughed out loud about Allen's response: I don't like Chucky Cheese. I could totally imagine my almost 3 year-old saying that. The hype didn't outshine the actual experience. Sorry little dude. But maybe, as a parent, you were kind of relieved?
Thursday, July 8th 2010 at 10:39 am |