By M Nair

We tell everyone who would listen that form is important, but ultimately, it’s substance that goes the distance.

Form relates to the external and cosmetics of a person, a thing, a product or a brand. Substance is the measure of how the person, thing, product or brand is experienced. Which do you think is more important?

For many years, companies have focused on the form elements of their products and services. It’s always been about how something looks: the colours, the font or the logo. Today is the era of customer experience. Customers are more interested in knowing that you practice what you preach. They will only associate themselves with a brand that walks the talk. And how will they know that you practice what you preach? That depends on their experience with you at each point of contact (customer touch points). This is why we say substance goes the distance; because a customer experience goes deeper than how beautiful a logo looks.

Let me share with you my own experience and I hope you’ll see what we mean.

A few years ago, my daughter wanted to celebrate her fifth birthday in a ‘kids-friendly’ food outlet. We were having the birthday dinner while the children played in the indoor playground area of this restaurant. Cheerful fun and then – catastrophe: my daughter fell on the steps of the play area and there was blood everywhere. Not a pretty sight!

Now, while I was trying to staunch the blood flow and console a 5-year old who is screaming in pain, I ask the staff for help and for some ice. They appeared to be in a blur and gave me the ice…but nothing else! No one came up to us to see if there was any way they could help. Not one of them came over to find out what had happened! We rushed from the food outlet to the hospital. My daughter received five stitches to her chin and is still carrying that scar today.

Naturally, I was not impressed with my experience. The next day, I telephoned the outlet Manager to give him a piece of my mind. Imagine my shock when the manager expressed his surprise on hearing what had happened, as there was no report of the prior evening’s incident. I took this to the next step, as this is a world-renowned brand, and wrote to the country head office. My concern was not only about the outlet’s lack of response, which was abysmal, but also to note that the play area equipment was a security hazard and they should do something about the potential danger.

I received a letter from the PR Manager, stating that their children’s playing area conforms to safety standards. Enclosed was a RM 10 dining voucher for my ‘next visit to their restaurant’. Have I used the voucher? Not on your life! I keep them around to remind me to never visit this restaurant again and also to tell others about my experience.

Where was the substance? The substance was in how I experienced the outlet’s service that eventful evening. Companies need to realise that customers are looking for more that just the delivery of products and services. I was looking for the conviction and care in the staff of that company to come through when something went wrong. In this instance, the brand’s substance failed.

Brands are more than FORM. Brands have a personality. Brands need to have SUBSTANCE. And substance is measured by the experience that customers have with your company. It’s the experience that counts; and many times this means people talking to people.

So, how are your people delivering the experience to your customers?

By F Kamaruddin

If you think your employees don’t influence your customers’ mood, you’re wrong!

I was reading one of my fav blogs, Naomi’s Blog and a post in January caught my attention and interest. She had been on a family vacation in Italy, and she shared with her readers her experience in a tarverna and at the Ducati Caffe, where the mood of the evenings were set by how the people in the two cafes greeted their patrons.

One evening, her party had ducked into a tarverna for shelter from the pouring rain. They were warmly welcomed by an friendly waiter who made sure they were comfortable, as he and the rest of the staff rushed around preparing to open for the evening. The personality of the place shone through their staff, and Naomi’s group had a great time and ended up staying much longer than they had originally planned.

However, the Ducati Caffe experience was the opposite. Staff were cold and appeared to lack in personality. It was something she did not expect from such a well-known Italian brand.

What struck me most was her statement, “The evening had been set by the way we were greeted” and I really think that’s true. How many times have you stepped into an establishment and thought, “these people don’t want my money”? Also, how many times have you returned to the same restaurant or laundromat / dry cleaners because of how you were treated every time you’re there?

The people who work in an organization ARE the organization’s brand because they are the ones who deliver the customer experience. When people interact with your company, they experience your products and services through the behaviour of your employees. All these moments of interaction are touch points, where someone comes face to face with your brand. A hip, modern logo and a memorable tagline are brand promises. A brand promise needs to be delivered at every touch point. If you run a theme park and your brand promises a “fun time for everyone in the family at every moment”, that brand promise will not be delivered if your customers experience surly park attendants and cold food that arrives late in the themed restaurants! Every employee needs to practice the right brand behaviour so that customers feel that you really walk the talk and care about designing and delivering the best experience, as promised.

For now, I leave you with one question. How are YOU delivering your organization’s brand promise?

* Naomi Simson is the founder and CEO of leading online gift retailer, RedBalloon. Read Naomi’s full post, Roman Holiday – Brand Lessons here.

By F Kamaruddin

Does everyone in your organization know how to answer the telephone the way they are supposed to?

Unless you have been living the life of a hermit in a cave deep in the forest for the last few years, the amount of time you’ve spent in telephone calls would be more than five minutes a day, according to Wikianswers. Regardless of what your company does, people will call your office every day. When people deal with your organization over the telephone, what’s their experience? Is everyone managing every phone call successfully? Or do you have some people with the great knack of handling telephone calls well while the rest can’t even be trusted to answer a ringing telephone? There is a way to improve this picture. We have three rules of effective listening to help you get started now in creating a memorable positive experience for your callers.

Rule 1. Effective listening starts in your mind. An open one, that is.

The telephone is a touch point; a chance for other people to get to know your brand and what your organization is about. Granted, an incoming phone call could be a complaint, but it could also be a long-awaited special offer or a new customer who’s just heard about you. Seeing the ringing phone as the enemy that interrupts your work will stop you from listening actively to the caller’s tone and words that correctly reflect his mood. You will miss his sense of urgency or jump into the wrong conclusions. Have you ever done that? Remember, that call you pick up could be the fifth or fifteenth for you but may very well be the person’s first call of the day. How will you use that one chance for making the right first impression?

Rule 2. Listening involves more than hearing.

Peter Drucker once said, “The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn’t being said.”
This means you need to really pay attention to how something is said. Let callers complete their questions and statements. Acknowledge verbally. Use recaps and probe gently to get all details. Listen to the tone of the caller’s voice to get a better idea of the mood he/she is in or if the caller’s in a rush. Keep a notepad with you to jot down key points. Check and clarify each point you noted. Even if it’s a simple task of asking the person to hold the line while you forward the call to your colleague, how you deal with the call influences the caller’s experience.

Rule 3. Listen to you, too.

How you respond to callers shapes their responses to you. Are you speaking too fast? Too loud? Too soft? Do you mumble? Does the tone of your voice sound pleasant to the ear? Is it too high? Too low? Just right? Do you sound alert or too bored to care? Your caller will hear it. Roll your shoulders back. Relax your facial muscles around your eyes and mouth before answering that phone call, and your caller will hear the smile in your voice and will feel assured that you are the right person to help her.

Next month, we’ll talk about the one ‘Do or die’ element that you need to have in place to help everyone in your organization manage all calls effectively. In the meantime, have you called your office lately? How would you rate that experience?