The Chipotle restaurant chain just announced that it will sponsor free screenings of the newly released documentary film, Food Inc. Kudos to them. There is something very authentic about allowing your brand to become vulnerable in this way. By inviting its customers to see the ugly truth, Chiptole is walking its talk of a responsible and healthy food movement.

Of course, the company is also risking the likelihood that a few of the more nutrition-conscious eaters they draw into the conversation might call them on anything Chipotle is doing that doesn’t quite make the grade. But, that seems to be part of the point in the brand’s Food Inc. support. According to a Hollywood Reporter article:

Chipotle says that 35% of the beans it uses are organically grown and that it serves more naturally raised meat than any other restaurant worldwide.

“I hope that all our customers see this film,” said Steve Ells, founder, chairman and co-CEO of Chipotle. “The more they know about where their food comes from, the more they will appreciate what we do.”

Now, given so much risk in opening consumer eyes to what may not yet be up to par in their own work, why would the brand decide to put itself so “out there?” If marketing to women is considered to be marketing to the highest standard of all consumers (as it should), there are two elements of such wisdom exemplified within this Chipotle “strategy”:

1) Acknowledging (and embracing) the fact that they are on a journey* toward a greater goal. A woman’s multi-constituent, multi-tasking, community-aware brain tends to appreciate this sort of adaptable, possibly meandering path. Chipotle’s healthy/fast food market segment is a very tight, focused consumer niche that likely thinks along similar lines. The brand’s executive team must feel confident that the sophistication level of such restaurant-goers will bear out. Chipotle expects, and likely will get, goodwill points for all their efforts in that positive direction. As a bonus, they’ll get more patience from consumers regarding any less-than-perfect business or food-related practices thus far. Consumers trust a journey – because it is human-scale. Consumers don’t trust an “all and perfectly done” proclamation, because that is truly impossible.

2) Choosing to rise above the competition by being an industry educator. To learn more about an industry or category, women will tend to take time gathering information and educating themselves before making a purchase. Any brand that helps in this process will be duly rewarded. Chipotle is doing this. Rather than looking for ways to exclude themselves from the fast food industry altogether, the brand is integrating new research and deliberately sharing that with the competition – as well as customers. What could be more counter-intuitive than sharing knowledge/content/ideas? Yet, those industry leaders that do will often become shining stars more easily seen by consumers. Such industry-wide education efforts may not garner a brand the big press or glamour of fancy promotions or astounding sales growth, but they do serve as a worthy investment toward reaching today’s more holistic consumer brain, male and female.

The Chipotle team is taking a risk by putting their own business under a microscope, but it also raises their profile in terms of their authenticity. Their approach and motivations should be a model for other brands in pursuit of the more sustainably-minded consumer. And, in my mind that person is either 1) a woman or, 2) is thinking a lot more like one today (using right with left brain to make decisions).

Moral of the story? Authenticity actually can’t happen without vulnerability, scary as that sounds. However, the right customers (your core market) will appreciate and reward you for it. So, take the risk so few brands will, and see what happens!