Touchpointers

photo (c) AMC

I like the AMC cable tv series, Madmen.  It’s set in the early 1960′s New York advertising agency world and seems to deliver an accurate peek into how that business operated back then (well before my time) while weaving in the requisite tv drama of relationship issues, marital affairs, etc.         

There’s a natural interest because of the advertising business context, my livelihood for the past 30 years.  But there’s something more.  There’s a certain visual style, a consistent smartness to the writing, a tight definition of the character roles, a freshness to the plot turns, and a real involvement with the unfolding storyline and the characters.  Every time I watch, I have an expectation that my one-hour investment won’t be wasted.    

Madmen appeals to me for various reasons, and it continues to reinforce those reasons every time I tune in.  From day one, I’ve been a loyal customer of the show.  And, until the producers mess up and give me a reason to stray elsewhere, I’ll continue to tune in to AMC every Sunday night at 10pm. 

Apparently I’m not alone.  The show does well in the ratings and has garnered critical acclaim since it began its run in the summer of 2007.   And for uber-fanatics, there are various ways to become even more deeply engaged with the show and it’s characters online and through social media. 

Successful tv shows like Madmen are actually no different than successful brands.  

Just as for well-liked tv shows, well-liked brands cultivate customer loyalty by consistently reinforcing the reasons those customers became customers to begin with.  They do this by carefully identifying, prioritizing, and then deliberately managing the customer interactions with the brand — the brand touch points — that drive the sale, reinforce brand loyalty, and foster a genuine long-term engagement. 

Customers form a positive image about the brands they repeatedly use, just like they do for the tv shows they routinely watch.  Maybe it’s worth thinking about your brands as if they were tv shows: 

• Are people tuning in?
• Tuning out?
• Are they regular viewers?
• Hit and miss?
• Loyal fanatics?
• Why?

Getting a handle on this now so you can better manage your brand touch points that metter will pay off with brand loyalty later.

A blank slate.  A fresh start.  A new company.  If you’re at the starting line for sure-fire success with a new venture, congratulations. 

One way to pave the way for that success is to consider the kind of brand image you want to have.  Do it today.  Right now.  Because whether you manage it now or not, the simple truth is that an image will start taking root of your company, product, and service.  And unless you take control of this yourself right from the start, you might not be too happy with what that image is.

When you contemplated starting your new venture, you most likely decided what kind of company you wanted to be relative to the competitive solutions already available to your future customers.  Ideally, you can identify several points of distinction between your company and your new competitors.  Maybe it’s the products.  Or the pricing.  Or quality.  Or service after the sale.  Or … whatever.   

Take all of this stuff rolling around in your head and spend some time writing it down for each of your brands.  Then, sit back and craft a vision/values statement for each brand: the irrefutable truth about what your brand unconditionally stands for.  

Next, write out your brand value proposition: the basic, functional benefits a customer will derive from using your brand; the emotional/feeling benefits a customer will derive; and, if appropriate, the self-image benefits a customer will derive.  Think about the relative role your pricing will play in the benefits equation, too.

Then move on to crafting your brand position.  This is what you’ll actively communicate to your prospective customers that demonstrates a distinctive and decisive advantage over your competitors.

Finally, map out the various ways you’ll likely interact with prospects and customers throughout the sales process: before, during, and after.  The obvious ways, and the not-so obvious ways.  Prioritize these relative to their impact on the sale or customer retention.  Then, create a plan to proactively manage the delivery of these interactions — your brand touch points — so that they’re in sync with your brand position platform, your brand value proposition, and your brand vision statement. 

If you do this, you’ll be in better control of what kind of image the public forms about your brand — because you’ve defined what you hope that image to be and you have a management plan to ensure it happens.  

And a strong, positive brand image leads to a strong, positive growth chart for your business.  Good luck.

The sale is made.  Cha-Ching!  But how do you keep existing customers coming back for more?  No matter what business you’re in (except, maybe funeral homes?), repeat sales are most likely a vital part of your continued success.

And that’s why post-purchase brand touch points are a big deal, not to be overlooked while so much emphasis is naturally placed on getting the sale to begin with.

Consider all of the ways you continue to interact with your customers, post-sale.  What situations and issues are likely to infuriate those customers the most, driving them away forever? 

• Product/service quality
• Warranty performance
• Tech support
• User training and documentation
• Return policies and procedures
• Product packaging
• Customer service personnel
• Etc. 

Each and every one of these post-purchase brand touch points  – and possibly hundreds more for your particular business — play a role in helping your customer decide if he or she will ever do business with you again. 

Remember  how hard it was to reel in that customer to begin with?  How about considering the potential lifetime value of that hard-won customer relationship.  Now add in the power of social media and user reviews and how those customers could very well spread the word about how great your product or service is … or isn’t.  

Isn’t it worth the considered effort to keep them happy after the sale?

It’s not what you say, it’s what you do.

That timeless chestnut sums up the difference in the oft-confused branding jargon of “identity” and “image.” 

Brand identity is how the business defines what the brand is all about.  It’s what the company defines and says itself about the brand.  

The brand image is formed out in the real world marketplace by customers, prospects, and influencers based on their various experiences and interactions with the brand on varioius levels.

Developing the brand identity platform is a considered process, often involving many — and sometimes all — managenment functions behind the brand: R&D, operations, marketing, sales, finance, etc.   It’s where the brand vision and values are carefully defined.  Where the competitive positioning and value propositions are crafted relative to targeted audiences and their wants and needs.  Where the messaging points for the brand are laid out.  And where the graphic system is developed.  All of this is the “say” part equation.  And, it’s all vital because it helps to ensure consistency in the way the brand is presented.  

The brand identity is brought to life — and the brand image formed — through the various brand interactions — touch points — which should also be methodically considered, prioritized relative to their ultimate role in driving the sale (new or repeat), and proactively managed to ensure delivery that is aligned with the brand identity.  Delivery of these brand touch points is the “doing” part of the equation. 

And it’s this doing that will provide the interactions that will lead your audiences to form their image of the brand and determine whether they ever buy from you (again) or move on to a competitive solution.     

If sales are not what they should be, maybe it’s time to take a long look at your brand identity and actual brand image.  

Is the brand identity in sync with your audiences’ wants and needs?  If not, rethink the identity platform and make the changes needed. 

Is there a disconnect between the brand identity and the actual image?  If so, look closely at the various brand touch points to see where the problem is.  

Brand identity is what you say.  Brand image is formed as a result of what you do.  Master both, and you’ll master success.

“What do you want to be when you grow up?”

We were all asked that at one time or another (I still ponder over this question for myself some days).  It’s a fair question to consider for your brand(s) right now – what do you want it/them to be today and tomorrow?  The process of formally answering this is the development of your brand identity.  It’s the platform from which all your future brand-related activities will spring to life.  It’s the litmus test to determine if future initiatives are in the best interest for the brand.  It’s the standard for how you deliver your brand touch points. 

This brand identity thing is a pretty big deal.

Managers of successful brands have paid much attention to developing and managing their brand identity.  Disney.  Apple.  BMW.  Nike.  Local sports franchises, and their leagues.  Even popular novelists and rock bands.  Each has a distinctive truth about it, which is consistently reinforced time and again in the way their respective touch points are delivered.  And make no mistake: the various touch points for each have been carefully planned and administered, and proactively managed as the marketplace continues to shift and evolve. 

Developing a successful brand identity is a complex process, but the big picture is this: consider what you want your customers, prospects, and others to think about your brand and define specifically how you want them to experience their interactions with the brand.  Then, plan and consistently deliver that defined brand experience … graphically, via your facilities, through your online and traditional promotional programs, in your sales presentations and customer service, and the myriad of other brand touch points that help drive sales (new and repeat) for your business.

So, what do you want your brand to be when it grows up?  Today is a great day to start thinking or rethinking about it.

Think about all of the various interactions your company has with customers and prospects before the sale is ever made.  The big, obvious ones and those that seem minor and insignificant. 

Got em all?   

You probably identified touch points like your advertising programs, trade shows, public relations efforts, email programs, direct mailings, your newsletter, the web site, sales materials, in-store displays and demos, product packaging, etc.

How about some of the less obvious touch points like your voice mail greeting, sales personnel, company-branded vehicles and drivers, your facility, the receptionist, your phone system IVR and on-hold messaging, and product features and benefits?  There are likely hundreds of these for your brand, each playing a role in whether or not that prospect will become a customer, and that customer will ever do business with you again.

The simple concept is this: the ways in which you engage customers and prospects before they decide to buy will determine if they buy… from you. 

Strangely, though, many companies don’t really think through the selling process in this way.  They don’t identify all of their pre-purchase brand touch points and then prioritize them in the order of importance in driving the sale.  They don’t define a standard for how those interactions should be delivered, and they don’t systematically assess their actual delivery against this standard.  Without this process, these companies can’t focus on delivering those critical brand touch points consistently and in alignment with the brand identity (brand identity = the strategic platform developed for the brand that essentially defines how you want your audiences to perceive and experience your brand.  Establishing this helps to ensure the brand is presented consistently and with one voice).

So, how are you doing with all of this?  If most managers don’t take the time to think through the pre-purchase process with this touch point mindset, doesn’t it make sense that those who do will gain a distinct business advantage?  And isn’t that what you’re looking for every business day?

Not long ago, my wife and I visited a local pizza joint for a late dinner.  The place was nearly empty when we arrived.  It was also a mess; every table was piled high with the previous guests’ trash.  Being a seat-youself place, we found what we believed to be the least-trashed table and stood next to it, hoping to catch the eye of a server to clear the way for us to sit.  Foolish us! 

Instead of acknowledging us and coming to our rescue, the staff busied themselves clearing off the other tables … where no guests were seated!  My wife and I remained quiet to see how this would play out.  10 minutes after arriving, a harried server finally came over to greet us and take a drink order — while the table remained piled high.  At that point I politely asked to speak to the manager, who came over and explained about the big party that had just left, etc.  She apologized for the delay in getting our table cleared and indicated she would “take very good care of us” (which I took to mean a discounted meal — not so).  We left there vowing that, with all the competitive options at our disposal, it would be a very long time before our shadows darkened this particular door again.  

Claims about the freshest ingredients, the widest selection, the best specials, the best taste, etc. will forever fall on my deaf ears simply because of a dropped ball on the simplest detail of expected customer service — a messy table.

Touch points will define your brand, and make or break your business.  Something to think about, perhaps.