Thank-You's

I'm having a good chuckle at myself this Sunday morning...
I came into the office to finish up a project and discovered a small package in my in-box. It was from the research group in China with whom I contracted for some mini-groups. So as one typically does when a mystery package is received, I tried to guess what was in it. Too small and odd-shaped for the focus group video. Definitely too small for a final report. Ahh.... it must be a thank-you gift from China! How cool is that? Throughout my career I've contracted countless research firms and subcontractors, and this is the first thank-you gift I've gotten at the end of a project.

"Wow, I'm going to blog on this," I thought to myself. A terrific one-to-one thank-you gift that set them apart from other researchers and showed that they cared about my business. I eagerly open it up, wondering what I received from the far East. The box contained focus group videos burned onto CD-ROMs. No note included. I felt quite disappointed, and then had a good chuckle at myself for even thinking that a research group would actually send me a thank-you gift, or even a card. Goes to show how rare it is.

So I've decided to do this in my own business. My personal epiphany from this little episode is that although I greatly appreciate my clients and I love helping them solve their business problems, I certainly don't demonstrate it like I should. I think the key challenge here is how to thank customers in a novel and genuine way. For a small business, or one with limited numbers of customers, that's relatively easy. For thousands or millions of customers, how can you do it in a way that hasn't been done a million times before (like reward points?). Citibank came out with its new Thank You commercials to promote its new reward program that features -- you guessed it -- points. I'd rather use my AAdvantage Citibank card and get frequent flier miles. I've read some harsh criticism of the campaign in the news because it's simply not believable. Points are no substitution for a heart-felt thank you. (And the ads make no sense either, but that's another post for another day.) The key is to show real appreciation, not to put a corporate marketing program in place. And this is best done through the actual customer experience. For example, I feel appreciated by the employees at Whole Foods and not at Simon David. So I drive farther and spend more money at Whole Foods, and I feel good about it.

Take the money spent in impersonal rewards points and put it towards hiring great employees, effective training and a fun work environment. Then you'll start seeing happy and loyal customers. Last week I watched some focus groups among B2B tech buyers who just wanted to receive a phone call from a senior manager (not the sales rep) once a year to thank them for their business, find out how they like the product and learn how they could help them better. Once a year!!! Just a call from a branch manager once a year would make these customers happy... and they spent several hundred thousand dollars on these systems. That would mean a couple phone calls per week for a manager to gain customer loyalty and repeat purchases. I'd call that a good return on investment.

So how are you thanking your customers? What about your employees?

Brand manifesto, cont'd

In a comment on my last post on Writing a Brand Manifesto, Bill asks,

how do you go about maintaining the spirit of the manifesto through growth? On the practical level, once a company reaches a certain size, once it has shareholders to answer to, the vision expressed through the manifesto is often lost, or at least overshadowed by the immediacy of quarterly earnings etc.

While the manifesto may inform a smaller company, especially a new one, how do you maintain it when a company is dealing with 10,000 or more employees, a broad customer base, and when it's trading on the market?

Good question. My view is that the manifesto (ie. purpose, meaning, vision) must be simple, compelling AND long-term in scope. Let me share a few examples to demonstrate this:

1. Whole Foods and Chipotle have both have set out to change the way America eats. This vision is easy to articulate and understand, and it's not quickly realized; employees and execs will stay busy pursuing this goal for decades. It also attracts employees who are passionate about supporting the cause (although I must say, Whole Foods has done a much better job with infusing the purpose down to the store employee level than Chipotle). Other great examples include Southwest Airlines, the Body Shop, the Linux movement... any company that sets out to 'rectify a wrong' in its industry and is able to rouse emotion in all constituencies.

2. Conversely, two clients of mine have set out to be the best value for small businesses. OK, so they figured out how to deliver the same service for a lower price. They got a bunch of customers. Now what? Discussions with employees revealed that they were floundering, unsure about the direction the company was going. Unsure that the company was going in any direction all. Offering lower prices (but not being the low-price leader) wasn't really a goal that employees could get jazzed about. They were just one of many companies offering a competitive alternative to the market leader. So instead of employees asking themselves, 'how can I support our cause?' they are asking, 'why am I here?' This is a recipe for failure.

3. Another client of mine wants to "own" a certain type of technology in the building automation sector, even though all their competitors are starting to offer it and customers don't even understand it. The fundamental flaw is that they're trying to own a feature (short-term in scope, easily commoditized) rather than a benefit (long-term in scope, elicits emotion).

I'll throw in one more point: the CEO is the driver of the vision, but cannot be the sole owner. If the CEO is not passionate, no one else will be passionate. On the other hand, what happens to the company if the CEO leaves? Or if, to Bill's point, the company grows so much that it's difficult for one person to effectively influence thousands on a daily basis? One company I've been impressed with is Cisco. They have 'merger teams' that spend time at newly acquired companies to teach them "the Cisco way."

So to wrap this up: you know you're on the right track when all employees can sincerely and consistently answer these questions about the company:
- This is what we believe in.
- This is why I come to work every day.
- This is "the company way."
- This is how we're going to change our small piece of the world.

If employees share common answers to these questions -- and you've got a mechanism to indoctrinate new employees to the cause -- then you shouldn't have a problem with maintaining the spirit of the vision through growth.

Missed blog opportunities

On MarketingProfs.com, B.L. Ochman writes about 10 companies that missed great blog opportunities. This list is a great idea-starter for companies who are curious about blogs but not sure how to incorporate them into their businesses.

Making Mantra

I just read Guy Kawasaki's manifesto, The Art of the Start, which outlines the 5 most important things for an entrepreneur to accomplish.

1 MAKE MEANING. The best reason to start an organization is to make meaning—to create a product or service that makes the world a better place. So your first task is to decide how you can make meaning.

2 MAKE MANTRA. Forget mission statements; theyʼre long, boring, and irrelevant. No one can ever remember them—much less implement them. Instead, take your meaning and make a mantra out of it. This will set your entire team on the right course.

3 GET GOING. Start creating and delivering your product or service. Think soldering irons, compilers, hammers, saws, and AutoCAD—whatever tools you use to build products and services. Donʼt focus on pitching, writing, and planning.

4 DEFINE YOUR BUSINESS MODEL. No matter what kind of organization youʼre starting, you have to figure out a way to make money. The greatest idea, technology, product, or service is short-lived without a sustainable business model.

5 WEAVE A MAT (MILESTONES, ASSUMPTIONS, AND TASKS). The final step is to compile three lists: (a) major milestones you need to meet; (b) assumptions that are built into your business model; and (c) tasks you need to accomplish to create an organization. This will enforce discipline and keep your organization on track when all hell breaks loose—and all hell will break loose.

I love #2... which makes sense, given the name of this blog and my company. Guy clearly outlines what I"m in business to do: help bring simplicity and clarity to the purpose of an organization. He gives a few examples of great mantras:

• Authentic athletic performance (Nike) • Fun family entertainment (Disney) • Rewarding everyday moments (Starbucks) • Think (IBM) • Winning is everything (Vince Lombardiʼs Green Bay Packers)

The only thing that Guy doesn't really address in his manifesto is the customers' viewpoints. He does recommend, "close your eyes and think about how you will serve your customers. What kind of meaning do you see your organization making?" Yet I often find that what is envisioned by company owners is different from what customers actually want. Two common and erroneous assumptions are:
1. the company owner thinks the same way as his or her customers.
2. the company owner's opinions are equal to the average opinions of hundreds (or thousands) of customers.

So even if an entrepreneur sells products or services to other entrepreneurs, that does not mean that he thinks the same way as the vast majority of his target audience. His ideas might place him at the far end of the bell curve. If you're not completely confident that you're solving the important unmet need, spend the time to make sure you're in the right track. (For example, competitive telecom providers thought they were solving the need for "cheaper"... but they didn't realize the need for "great customer service" was more important.) There are cost-effective ways to understand the mind of the market: just start talking to people about their frustrations and needs. Quantify your learning by using a free survey site like SurveyMonkey. Do some research on the web to find published statistics on your market. Or spend a bit of money for an industry report. Usually investors will want to know that you've done your homework.

Other than this point, I love how Guy has clearly outlined how to make meaning and mantra. Just for kicks, here's my very first blog post that talks about the reason for my blog & company name. Guy and I both use the same dictionary definition of mantra. I'll be flattered if he used my blog for input :-).

Manifesto

At ChangeThis, Guy Kawasaki publishes his manifesto, The Art of the Start.

For those of you who clicked over here from that page, it seems that there were some coordination difficulties... I was supposed to publish the manifesto here at Brand Mantra, but I didn't receive it before it was published. Not only that, but I can't figure out how to actually download the manifesto from the ChangeThis site.

So hang tight until I can get more info...

UPDATE: Ok, I finally got my hands on the manifesto. The optional email field next to the download button threw me... at first glance it looks like a way to sign up to receive more manifestos. I'm going to chalk it up to a web usability issue so that I don't feel so silly missing the big red download button :-).
Commentary is coming soon!

Writing a Brand Manifesto

I got a challenge last week via email from someone seeking information on how to write a brand manifesto. I did a quick search on Google and didn't come up with much, so I thought it would make a great topic for a blog post. I may ramble a bit, but here goes...

First, a few definitions. A manifesto is "a public declaration of principles, policies, or intentions, especially of a political nature." It comes from the Latin word manifestus, which means "clear or evident."

I define brand as the idea about your company in the minds of stakeholders. And just as actions speak louder than words, the brand idea is created more by operations than by marketing.

So I see a brand manifesto as a declaration of 1) the core intention of the brand, 2) the guiding principles of the brand, and 3) the policies that guide each department to effectively realize the stated intention. So unlike brand visions or missions (which only focus on intention), a brand manifesto should get into the nitty gritty of turning the intention into reality. Bridging the gap between rhetoric and experience is so critical in building strong brands... I've done a number of B2B customer research projects in the last year in which "delivering on promises" was one of customers' top issues when dealing with vendors. A brand manifesto is both a promise, and guidelines to the corporate team on how to deliver that promise.

I think the big idea here is that it's a public declaration, not something that's limited to employees. Everyone sees it. Customers, investors, partners... everyone. It doesn't feature vague, self-serving statements about being the "leading provider" or "market-share leader." Your intentions are written in clear and friendly language, and the manifesto contains proof that you're putting your intentions into action. A great example is Chipotle's "Food with Integrity" manifesto. It clearly outlines their brand intentions and how they're setting out to achieve it. And this example brings up one more point about brand manifestos. They're ambitious. They're revolutionary. If you read the Chipotle manifesto, you'll see that they're setting out to change the way Americans eat.

Today our size allows us economies of scale. It helps us influence the decisions of suppliers. And it lets us shoulder our way into the consciousness of the American eating public. Like we’re doing now. Our size means we can change for the better the way people eat. What does all this mean for you? In the short term it means better-tasting tacos and burritos. If you have been with us for several years you will have already noticed a difference. Looking forward, it means encouraging growers to pursue humane and healthy practices, and rewarding small farmers who eschew mass production in favor of quality. It means new and higher expectations from all of us about what we consume every day. Have we achieved our mission? No. Will we ever accomplish it? Never, because Food With Integrity is a constant process of searching and improving. But the changes will be noticeable, positive and significant. And you’re part of making it happen, every time you come in. Thanks.

To be revolutionary, you've got to have passion. The manifesto must be something not only worth reading, but worth acting on. Can your company create a movement? Can it improve people's lives in some small but important way? I wrote a couple posts (here and here) about Ikea that included the following quote from a Guardian article:

In 1976, (founder) Ingvar Kamprad crystallised his thinking in a hyperbolic tract entitled The Testament of a Furniture Dealer, setting out Ikea's "sacred concept", and waxing evangelical on the necessity of salvation. It was, he wrote, "our duty to expand ... Those who cannot or will not join us are to be pitied ... What we want to do, we can do and will do, together. A glorious future!"... Ikea's moral crusade extends uncompromisingly to the customer. Whether you like it or not, it intends to teach you the value of good, honest, simple hard work. Self-assembly, viewed from this perspective, is more than a cost-cutting measure: it's a tool of evangelism, designed to make you sweat for your own edification.

So a brand manifesto crystalizes and clarifies the revolutionary intention of an organization, and it asks others (employees and customers) to join together and make it a reality. Powerful stuff. Not easy, but powerful.