BNet has character

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I am a big fan of BNet, they've got great articles about fields I enjoy reading about. I am also a fan of them on facebook (correction: "like"). Here is a response by BNet on one of my comments. They responded with: "Admit it: you all feel smarter …

I am a big fan of BNet, they've got great articles about fields I enjoy reading about. I am also a fan of them on facebook (correction: "like"). Here is a response by BNet on one of my comments.

They responded with: "Admit it: you all feel smarter just saying "Pareto's Law", don't you? ^SHS"

It is a candid response with a cheeky touch, and it gives BNet character. Can this response be taken the wrong way? Yes it could. Did BNet think about this when they commented back? Yes they did. Traditional communication would have frowned at such communication. These days this is the only way of connecting with your tribe.

Are you ever cheeky in your communication?

Blog : BatesHook

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Superior customer service doesn’t always mean eye contact, smiles and a human connection. Superior customer service sometimes just means help me get my task done quickly. And let me go my merry way without some brand blah blah, handshake and efforts to sell me more.
via bateshook.com

True, this means that you need to realize what you customer wants (easy right!?). Consumer centric organizations don't push their brand for brand pushing sake, they integrate the brand in the most desirable experience for their customers. Think about fast food, think about Jiffy Lube, think about any store with an express counter.

Speed and no frills can be part of the experience, brand this carefully without weighing down the experience.

Every single touch-point matters.

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Nuance? No time for nuance.

Every interaction might be the whole thing.

via sethgodin.typepad.com

This is key. You create multiple touch-points, you create a story that brings a customer from touch-point A to touch-point Z. You keep the end in mind and plan that the sum of all touch-points communicates your brand message.

Once in a while, step back. Touch each touch-point by itself, is the story still clear?

To test your customer experience try sending in people to experience just a single point of contact. What is the result then?

Make your brand DNA clear through your customer experience

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Have you heard about MOO? Ian Sanders just wrote about them on BNET, a site I read on a regular basis.

You’ve either heard of MOO or you haven’t. And if you have, I bet that like me you’ve recommended loads of people to their site, where they’ve fallen in love with MOO business cards. So how has this four-year-old company from London made such an impact on the marketplace, earning a reputation among creatives and start-ups in the digital world? Here are some of the reasons this company of just 32 people has acquired customers in 181 countries:

It’s a game-changer: Like any innovative brand, MOO is refreshingly different. Business cards used to be expensive things you got your designers to organize and get printed. Along came MOO, with a web-based offering where you could upload your own artwork or use one of their templates — all for just £12.99 (about $20) for 50 cards.

It’s customizable:  Every card or sticker in a pack can carry a different image, giving clients a huge scope for customizing their message to different audiences.

It offers incentives: Moo offers referral codes for introduction to friends and promotions for discounts and special offers.

It’s personality-driven: The brand oozes personality from the website all the way through to the packaging when it lands on your desk.

It’s user-friendly: The website is easy to use and easy to upload to.

(By Ian Sanders @bnet)

The things that make MOO work as an experience?
  • They have and know their brand DNA.
  • MOO communicates their brand DNA through every touch point.
So as a business ask yourself this.
  • Do you know who you are as a company?
  • Do your employees know and live the company DNA, ARE they the company DNA?
  • Do you know all your customer touch points?
  • Are you communicating your brand DNA through all touch points?
What is way in which you as business owner, manager could do this?
  1. Map out your customer touch points.
  2. Format quantitative and qualitative questions that objectively measure each touchpoint.
  3. Give this questionnaire to a boatload of friends and have them shop at your shop.
  4. Compile all the data and check if it shows your brand DNA come through.
When is the last time you evaluated your customer experience?

Plug: For a great book about connecting the brand to the customer experience check "Design Thinking" by Thomas Lockwood