Posts Tagged: Branding

Leadership — No Comments
4
Dec 09

Working Through the Details

Details make everything seem a bit more real. For instance, it’s much more interesting to say “the woman wore a deep red coat with a lace collar that looked like a delicate hands choking her neck,” than to say, “the woman wore a red coat.” You can imagine the red coat with the lace, can’t you?

The video below illustrates my point about detail. Look at the camera and the way the film is shot:

Now think about the same video with a steady camera that you typically find in movies. It wouldn’t be the same, would it? Shaking the camera brings you closer to the action — it makes it more real, tangible and chilling.

Now think about how you can add detail to your business. Is it describing the pecan sauce in the description of your menu item (think high-end restaurants) or mailing your client a thank you card or even something as simple as saying good job to your employees. You’d be surprised what a little more attention to detail can get you.

Branding — No Comments
29
Nov 09

Stepping Down to Step Up

Here is an excerpt from a blog I stumbled across:

Today we’re going to take a little trip in the wayback machine with the help of my colleague Seth Manheim, who was there when this happened.

Set the date to November 22, 1989, twenty years ago and one day. Bill Gates is being taken on a guided tour of the product support department’s new office building, and during his visit, he asks one of the people manning the phones,

“Mind if I take this call?”

Bill puts on a headset, sits down, and answers the phone. “Hello, this is Microsoft Product Support, William speaking. How can I help you?”

Bill talks with the customer, collects the details of the problem, searches in the product support Knowledge Base, sifts through the search results, finds the solution, and patiently walks the customer through fixing the problem.

The customer is thrilled that William was able to fix the problem so quickly, and with such a pleasant attitude. Bill wraps up the call. “And thank you for using Microsoft products.”

At no point did Bill identify himself as anything other than William. The customer had no idea that the product support engineer who took the call was none other than Bill Gates.

But the story doesn’t end there.

Even though this story took place while most of the support staff were on their lunch break, news travels quickly, and soon everybody in the department knows about The time Bill took a product support call.

Some time later, the same customer calls back with a follow-up question.

— Hi, I called you folks with a problem with XYZ, and I talked with a nice man named William who straightened it all out. But I have another question. Can I speak with William?

“Okay, let me see if William is available.” The product support engineer brings up the customer’s service record and looks at the name of the support engineer who handled the earlier call: billg.

“Yeah, um, I’m sorry, but William is not available right now. His friends call him Bill, by the way. The person who helped you last time? That was Bill Gates.”

— Oh my God.

How many people do you think that surprised customer told, “Bill Gates helped me fix my computer.” And how many people do you think have heard this story on the web? How do you think something so simple as taking a customer service call can create such buzz? By simply stepping out of our expectations of a Captain of Industry, Bill Gates was able to create a viral campaign to enhance his brand image.

What do people expect of you? And how can you change that expectation to create a memorable impression? Of course, this is not to say you could start dancing on your desk. It’s about doing something positive that engenders goodwill. It could be something as simple as buying your boss abox of chocolates from your trip to Hersheys. It’s not overly complicated but unexpected.

Branding — 1 Comment
7
Oct 09

The Crow Paradox and Consumer Attitudes

NPR recently reported on the crow paradox. Studies have shown, crows can recognize and remember individual humans for years, while humans have a tough time differentiating one black bird from the next.

Interestingly, if you upset one crow, they will caw–cuing another nearby bird to caw and soon the entire flock is mad at you. It’s viral. Not only will they be mad at you then, but when they see you across town, they’ll caw and soon it’s turned into the G version of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds.

The crow paradox could not be more relevant than in the digital age.

When your brand leaves an impression on a consumer, whether it’s good or bad, they will “caw” and let their friends know, either through word-of-mouth or social media. Particularly when something is bad, they can blast their message to hundreds of people, depending on their community influence.

If others agree, they’ll jump on the wagon, creating a banned group of unhappy consumers. And as your brand stretches into the digital space, every logo or mention of your brand they see, they will be reminded of how much they don’t like you.

Before that one person infects a group of people with negativity about your brand, recognize their dissatisfaction and try to rectify it. That means being quick on your toes; being responsive. The more time it takes for you to rectify the situation, the less control you have over the consumers attitude towards your brand.

Branding — No Comments
30
Sep 09

Get Off My Social Property

Early in the afternoon I heard the clanking of bottles and a shrill voice yell, “Get off my property,” about five times, consecutively. I imagined it to be a homeless man scrounging for bottles in the garbage across the street and the homeowner whom he was taking from got a bit overzealous. It got the wheels turning about brands interaction with consumers in social communities.

Often times, fans of social sites consider it to be private property—free of sales and pitchmen (i.e. brands). When brands invade their private property, some yell just like the woman across the street. Most people don’t mind, however.

To avoid those outspoken opponents, consider if the homeless man were to take a different approach—one that was not so intrusive—he might find more success. Consider Target. Every year they donate X amount of dollars to several charities. To open the lines of communication with Facebook users, they asked them to allocate their charities dollars for them.

Their efforts paid off. They garnered significant traffic and brand mentions permeated the blogosphere. This is an effective way to approach social private property. Ask yourself what you can offer them before you ask what they can offer you.

Branding — 1 Comment
23
Sep 09

How a Jail Break Can Increase Product Value

As a thank you for taking care of our bunny rabbit, my girlfriend wanted to buy my parents a gift. My girlfriend, her mother and I found this cute local shop in a quaint town outside Philadelphia, PA.

As we were browsing, a tall gentleman in a neon orange sweater comes in, huffing and puffing. He asks to use the bathroom and the store owner tells him it’s for paying customers only.

He pauses, then asks if he can tie his shoe. (Who asks to tie their shoe?) Meanwhile, my girlfriend finds an ice cream serving dish and proceeds to check out.

The man then leans down behind a display case in the center of the store and ties his other shoe. This man should probably have been in a shoe store with all of the problems he was having with his footwear.

While he was tying his shoe for the second time, a police officer stood outside of the shop, his back turned, talking on his radio. After the officer left, the man took a peak out of the front door, and passed a mail carrier on his way out.

The carrier delivered some mail and as she left the store, she hailed the police officer and pointed in the direction of the malfunctioning-shoe man. A short man–no taller than five feet–whizzed by the store, chasing the man. Several seconds behind him, the overweight police office hurried to catch up.

Come to find out, the shoe man had escaped from a nearby courthouse when he was told he had to pay child support.

No longer is that ice cream dish a $21.99 item, it’s worth much more. With the story behind the gift, I’d value it at least $49.99, because now, whenever my parents use the serving dish, whether it’s with family or friends, they can pass along the tale of the escapee. It is no longer a piece of metal, it has a personality.

People are willing to pay more for compelling stories. Consider purveyors of luxury. When you buy that Tiffany & Co. diamond earrings, you’re paying partly for the earrings, but you’re also buying the powder blue box. The same goes for BMW, or Lexus or Hermes. You’re buying the story attached to the name. That blue and white BMW emblem is an icon of luxury that speaks volumes of your social status.

Stories tie your product or service to an emotion. And mostly, people buy with their hearts, not their minds. If you can make that emotional connection through a story, you’re product or service is more than just a metal ice cream serving dish, it’s special.

Branding — No Comments
14
Sep 09

Do You Need to Shake Everybody’s Hand?

Saying goodbye to everyone at a birthday party, I shook the hands of those friends I was closest to, but there was one awkward moment between someone I kind of knew, but didn’t at the same time.

There was this strange moment when I waved and he went to shake my hand. Because I didn’t know him well, I didn’t know if I could complete the handshake and laugh about the awkwardness. So I ignored his offer like it never happened and left.

Everyone’s probably had an experience like this at one time or another. Do you need to shake everyone’s hand? If there are more than five people, that is a lot of handshaking time. Usually you shake the hands of those people you are closest to. Hugs are reserved for the most important.

Should brands have to shake everyone’s hand? At chain restaurants, managers are trained to say, yes. At Denny’s, Bugaboo Creek and the many others, every customer (or “client”) is valued. But what about those freeloaders that are actually a detriment to your company? Some brands not only shake freeloaders hands, but give them big fat hugs (in the form of gift certificates).

Many of these brands can learn from purveyors of luxury products and services. There are very defined barriers between those whom get their hand shaken, those who don’t and even those who get great big hugs. Wasting time and money on those that don’t matter makes poor business sense.

As it doesn’t make sense to shake hands with and hug the 20 people at the party, nor does it make business sense to cater to those that don’t matter.

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