From Counting Impressions – to – Being Impressed

Don’t let poor experiences destroy your brand’s credibility. Stand out with excellence in a sea of mediocrity.

So what does this really mean? It means that the focus of marketers has shifted (and if it hasn’t it better) from themselves and their brands to how customers experience their brands.

To attract and retain customers, which is the sole purpose for being in business, we must understand that every interaction with a prospect or customer is a step to further establishing a profitable customer relationship or turning them off for good. Obviously, we want every interaction with our brand to be positive and impress. That means our advertising messages had better be in perfect harmony with the delivery of product or service.

Think about it. What good does it do to reach millions of people with a well crafted marketing message, only to fall short in providing an impressive experience with the customer once he or she is engaged. Believe me, you might have reached millions of eyeballs and draw people in, but the negative comments of a few customers experiencing a less-than-stellar performance can reach the masses very quickly.

Here are a few tips to help you go from counting impressions to impressing (and retaining) customers:

1. Focus on every touch point within the scope of customer experience.
2. Frame customer experience from the customer’s point of view.
3. Get customer input and let it drive priorities, decisions, and investments.
4. Think in terms of customer needs, not your personal preferences.
5. Share customer insight with everyone in your organization.
6. Empower employees.
7. Make it easy to do the right thing.
8. Measure employee engagement.
9. Communicate, communicate, communicate, and communicate some more.
10. Make it a Big Deal when employees do things to WOW customers.

Incorporate these actions into your marketing plan, and you’ll see customers impressed by the impression you make.