Relationships

Where is this relationship headed?

The one question that strikes fear into our hearts.  And yet it's exactly what consumers are asking. The real question is, are brands listening?  If they are they're hearing cries for more transparency, less hype, more honesty and more consideration for the things that consumers value most.  In short, consumers are offering up a mandate--get real or we're out of here.  And take heed corporate America, one of the only real positive byproducts of having more choice is that consumers no longer have to stay in bad brand relationships.  Some other shinny product or service is waiting right around the aisle or just a click away.

So what's the point here?  Well, just as in any other lopsided relationship where's there more take than give, someone is bound to get frustrated, feel abused and begin looking for the door.  Hold on you say! Why we just conducted a tracking study six months ago and it didn't indicate any unrest.  Six months ago?  If I only spoke to my wife once every six months I'd be sent packing too!  Speak with your customers often.  Let them know what your dreams are.  Let them know what you'd like from them.  Listen and demonstrate that you've listened.

The last thing any relationship needs is a hidden agenda, a lack of effort or worse yet, promises made with no follow through.  Conversely, an open, honest, on-going dialog is almost always a sign of a healthy relationship.  So don't be afraid to be open and honest with your customers.  Admit when you're wrong, ask for their opinion along the way, do something nice to reward them for their continued loyalty and never stop saying thank you.

In other words, allow your customer into the relationship.  Treat them with respect.  Earn their trust and who knows,if you do they're likely to stay and tell all their friends what a catch you really are! 

A promise kept

After a tortuous 24 month battle, the people (electorate) have finally spoken. After all the speeches, debates, babies kissed, plane rides, bus rides, conventions, and hand shakes, we've ended the agonizing game of "who do you trust."  Now comes the hard part for our President Elect--keeping all those promises.

As one strategic consultant puts it, "It's important to remember that in every belief you express, in every role you accept, and in every aspect of the image you project, you are making promises--promises for authenticity, integrity, and consistency--promises to which your life makes you accountable.

But this is not meant to be a political commentary.  Rather it's yet another example of the truths found in our personal relationships being applied to our business relationships.  When we make promises to others, they assume we're going to deliver on those promises.  If we don't, we find ourselves spending a lot of time alone.

So it is with brands.  For years brands have been making promises.  Some have delivered--some have not.  Those who have kept their promises have kept their employees and their customers.  Those who haven't find themselves wondering why they keep losing the people most important to their future success and whey they keep losing market share and revenue.  Chuck Edwards, co-founder of a Seattle based database service provider claims,  "your brand promise is shorthand for everything your company stands for." 

So the question is , what does your brand stand for?  What promises has your brand made to it's employees and its customers?  Have you been delivering on your promises?  Or, are your customers confused?  If your brand says one thing and does another, or looks and acts differently each time your customers interact with you then trust is eroded and customers go elsewhere to find a more rewarding relationship.

The fact is people choose products and services based on how closely aligned their values are with a company and how much they trust what that company says by seeing how that company behaves.  So keep your promises.  Keep accountable.  Consistently deliver.  By doing so you will transform your company's values into your most valuable corporate asset--trust.  Then stand back and watch how that trust produces tangible, sustainable results.

Piercing the Corporate Veil

A fellow trust advocate, Dean Crutchfield recently published an article in Advertising Age in which he suggested that corporations today are competing for more than share of market or revenue--they are competing for share of trust.  He makes a strong case for the fact that in today's economy, "the notion of trust has moved from trust in the company's product to trust in the people behind the product.

All we have to do is look at the recent Wall Street explosion to see that consumers today are taking things personally, and holding people responsible for the decline in corporate moral behavior.  As Crutchfield states, "in today's world full of litigation, accusation, scandal and bankruptcy, evidence and counter evidence, whom do you trust?"

What Crutchfield points to in his article mirrors what we've been claiming for a few years now, that bad corporate behavior cannot be hidden behind a shiny advertising campaign. That the behavior of a brand shapes the experiencewith that brand, and not solely the messaging. And what guides the behavior of a brand?  Values provide the guide.  That's why we continue to urge our clients to communicate their values.

Let's look quickly at the entire premise of the "corporation."  Why were corporations created in the first place?  To deflect risk away from the company's ownership.  To protect those in charge from missteps in the public arena.  But we all know that our relationships with brands aren't with  "legal" corporate entities, they're with the people who work for or represent the brand.

I would argue then, that we should dispense with the notion of the corporate 'facade' and get on with building relationships between CEOs, employees and customers, based on the values we share. By doing so the questions being asked today, "Are they the sort of people who would... sell me a stock that wasn't worth the paper it was written on? Tell me a product is safe when it's not?  Pollute the environment, all in search of a profit?" will all be answered.  We won't be wondering any longer.  We'll know, because we'll know the people behind the "veil" and we can decide for ourselves. 

RNC--DNC--Run DMC, oh say can you see?

Good Lord Y'all!  What a fascinating "petri dish" of human nature we get to examine thanks to our political conventions.  It this isn't the most powerful case for shared values at work I don't know what is.  Obama excites a crowd of over 80,000 packed into a football stadium.  Palin galvanizes the conservative core at the very annoucement of her name.  What's going on here?  A study in the values at work behind every choice we make, that's what.

He knows exactly how I feel.  She's speaking only to me.  I'm a veteran--he's a veteran.  He's the only one who understands the inner city.  I know what it's like to bump up against the glass ceiling just like her.  We have so much in common it's downright frightening.  Why, we can even finish each other's sentences.  What do you mean you don't agree?  You must be a racist.  You must be a sexist.  You must be out of your mind.  And so the aligning goes on.  All well and good but what about those who have been left out?  Clinton's 18 million?  The moderate conservatives? 

Horrible to have your trust violated by your heros.  Why didn't Hillary make it?  Why couldn't he have picked Mit? What the heck is a democrat doing speaking at the republican convention? Some may choose to stay in the relationship.  Others may opt to seek out another significant other.  Others yet may choose no choice at all.  And the disappointment goes on.

Now imagine for one second that all those delegates represent your customers.  Which ones do you want most?  The loyal CORE of course.  You know, the ones wearing the funny hats.  Holding up the hand-made signs.  The ones who laugh at all your jokes and cry on cue.  The ones who will be handing out your banners and bumper stickers to their friends and neighbors.  So as you're out attracting "new delegates" don't forget the ones that got you to the dance.  Because they're watching and waiting to be noticed.  Don't forget to thank them.  Oh and God bless the ____________ party and God bless America. 

Do I know you?

Ok.  I just hit double nickels.  That's right 55 (that's 255 in advertising years.)  Aside from being able to eat dinner now at 4:00pm and save 3 bucks on the meal, I've noticed another more significant change in my life.  I have a shrinking circle of really good friends.  I shower regularly.  Pick up the check when necessary. And laugh at almost any joke, so what's going on here?

I'm pretty sure that like many of you, I"ve come to realize that I simply don't have time to manage multiple relationships.  So I choose more carefully these days.  I only spend time with and invest in people who I have something in common with.  In fact, if I held up a mirror they'd look alot like me (without the bags under the eyes.)

The fact is, it takes time to enter into, develop and grow a meaningful relationship.  It takes real commitment.  And as we all know it ain't easy work.  On the flip side, it's extremely rewarding when you're in a good one.  There's comfort, safety, excitement, laughter.  In other words, great relationships are good for the soul.

Ok, this is primarily a business blog so what does any of this babbling have to do with business?  More than you can imagine.  Because I've also noticed that I have fewer "casual" relationships with brands these days.  I simply don't have time to manage all the choices of products and services anymore.  I only invest in companies that look like me (without the bags under the eyes.) 

So it's more important than ever that brands take the time to get to know me and what I value.  And equally important that they communicate their values.  If there's a match there's a better chance that we'll meet, get to know each other (so well, in fact, that we'll finish each other's sentences,) and grow old together. 

Just like personal relationships, it's hard work for companies to develop meaningful relationships with their customers.  But here's the 64 thousand dollar question--do you want your company to be part of the small circle of "friends"  that customers have time to manage?  If the answer is yes then the hard work is worth it.  Who knows, someday you and your customer can retire together, travel, and sip those little umbrella drinks on some secluded island.

Communicate your values

With all the choices of products filling up supermarkets, electronics and department stores these days, how on earth can we possibly choose and feel good about our choices?  Well, the answer is simple-- it's virtually impossible!  Never before in history have we been bombarded with so much to choose from.  For most of us, what used to be a simple decision-- I'll take the one with the "new and improved formula" has given way to "nothing new under the sun."

To make matters worse, many brands continue to over-promise performance just to get us to try them just once.  Of course when our experience with the product doesn't live up to the hype, we're onto the next brand.  Then there's the company that chooses to beat us over the head with "the most features in  its class."  Trouble is, a month later the competition has the same features but of course they add in a few more to really show up the competition.  In the end, we all lose. The fact is, no brand can win in today's marketplace by attempting to feature and benefit consumers to death. I suggest another strategy.  Take a risk!  Put your brand's stake in the ground.  Stand for something beyond features.  In other words, communicate your company values.  LIke any healthy relationship, we're attracted to certain people, causes or brands because we have something in common.  Something that binds us together.  Let your customers know what's important to you beyond generating revenue. Those values that you hold in common with your customers are the same values that will help you survive a "not so wonderful" product launch, or a poor earnings report.  Communicating your company values can also help galvanize and give a renewed sense of purpose to your entire organization.

In the end, the brands that prosper will be the ones that courageously endeavor to make meaning as well as profit.

What does trust have to do with it?

We all know that the foundation of any successful relationship (either personal or business) is trust.  Trust earned over time.  I would suggest that problems like "churn" and lack of customer loyalty can really be traced back to "trust violations."  In other words, many brands simply don't live up to the claims they make when "courting" their customers.  Too many brands are guilty of what I would call "speed dating."  Once they attract a customer they get lazy.  They just don't want to put the work into nurturing the relationship.  And as we all know, it takes work to maintain and grow trust.

Stephen Covey understands this principle.  He argues, "when you think about it, trust is everything."  "It's even more important than vision, strategy, systems, and skills because trust dramatically affects the trajectory of each of those elements and of every other element.  Trust increases the speed at which organizations and people can perform.  Trust decreases operational costs and improves profits.  Without trust, any company, team, or strategy can become derailed."

Mr. Covey is absolutely right.  Think about it for a moment.  Wa all know the difference between a good and bad relationship.  Ever notice that when a relationship is based on trust, things just get done faster? Without trust, every decision is second guessed. Things move incredibly slow.

Yes, it takes more time to build trust.  Is it worth the effort?  Well, if you consider greater employee and customer loyalty, increased profits, and an ehanced reputation important ingredients to success then I would answer, absolutely yes!

Relationship building in China

The May issue of Fast Company has a great article about GE building relationships and building business in China.  In the article Scott Donnelly, CEO of GE Aviation was quoted as saying "You don't just sell an engine and say, Thank you very much, and you're gone,  It's not a transaction but an ongoing relationship.  Selling an engine as a part of an airplane deal is the beginning of 20 to 25 years of servicing that engine.  But in this case, the relationship doesn't end there.  The engine deal is just the tip of the iceberg.  You see, there are other market opportunities in China as part of a countrywide airport plan-- power grid, water, and rail projects at stake that GE subsidiary companies have available if the relationship is nurtured and trust is built.

In this case, as in others, a healthy relationship built on consistent performance and trust over time can lead to billions in revenue.  Of course this is no short-term proposition but the brass at GE get it.  They're looking past the next quarter's sales quotas and searching rather for sustainability in their relationship with China's private sector as well as local and state government.

Can you look past the next quarter?  Do you see the relationship beyond the transaction?  Sometimes you need to take a step back in order to move forward.  If you do you will likely discover some things about your customers that you've never taken time to ask.  With that knowledge you can reassess your ability to meet their expectations and build your relationship on the values you share with your customers.

Inspiring meaningful relationships

Behind every successful transaction is a healthy relationship.  Something we seem to have lost sight of as marketers.  How would our world change if we treated the relationships with our customers more like our most precious personal relationships?  That's exactly the purpose of this blog--to explore the answers and learn from each other along the way.  I love to talk about relationships--especially business relationships.  That's why I want to share, with all those who will listen, that businesses would be far more successful and customers would be far more loyal if we paid more attention to what's in the heart vs. what's in the wallet.

We all know that every long-lasting relationship is built on two solid pillars--shared values and trust.  We are attrracted to one another by the things we share in common and our relationships grow as we learn to trust each other over time.  Without shared values relationships have no solid foundation upon which to grow.  Without trust it's impossible to fully commit.

So why, as marketers do we have such a hard time hanging on to customers?  Could it be that we've gotten so sophisticated that we've forgotten the basic tenants of buidling relationships?  The answer is a resounding yes!  In striving for the ever-elusive transaction, we slice, dice, cluster and analyze "consumers" and in the process we lose our sense of humanity and concern.  After all, who needs loyalty and trust when the end of the month approaches and our sales quotas haven't been met?

In contrast, I believe that the single most valuable asset owned by any corporation is trust.  Competitors can replicate your manufacturing process, your marketing effort, your pricing, but competitors cannot replicate the trust you've earned over time with your customers.

The funny thing is that we all know how important trust is to our personal relationships and what great relationships look like in our own lives.  We're involved in them every day and yet when we all put on our marketing hats we get lost in the world of jargon and lose sight of the ultimate goal of any great relationship--a fully-engaged and trusting partner.

So let's take what we know about successful personal relationships and bring them into the office every day.  Then apply what we know to our relationships with our clients and on behalf of our clients with their customers.  By inspiring meaningful relationships we will find a greater sense of purpose.  We will do more than create revenue. We will leave a legacy.