WELCOME, WELCOME, WELCOME !
A belated Happy New Year to everyone and a big thanks for stopping by for a visit. 2012 is a special year for Story Mavericks. It marks our 25th Anniversary as a video production company. I’ll share more thoughts and observations on this milestone in future post.
As you may know we have been very busy designing our website, blog and newsletter. This process involved switching suppliers in all three cases which has been a challenge. One of the challenges was figuring a way to efficiently transfer two years of Rock Your Customers Post. I’ve been told it can be a night mare to try to automate the process so I’ve decided to share some of the post piece by piece. I hope you don’t mind. The writings are still timely and relevant to the current day business environment. So without further fanfare here are some thoughts on why we called this blog “Rock Your Customers”.
Rock Your Customers Live !
Welcome back to The Rock Your Customers Blog. I really do appreciate your visit and hope the time you spend on the blog provokes a world changing idea. Really !
Rock Your Customers
I don’t know if I’ve shared the full backstory for naming this blog -Rock Your Customers-but let me keep it simple by saying part of the reason was that I’ve always enjoyed attending live rock concerts. The theme was developed a few years ago during a creative exercise that was part my Experience Economy Certification Training. Well it just so happens that during this past month, I’ve attended a few live concerts and it seems like the perfect time to share what the heck Rock & Roll has to do with business. What can all business leaders and marketing professionals learn by attending a rock concert ?
Here’s a few tunes..Oh I mean thoughts provoked by The Moody Blues, Heart, Journey and Toby Keith at The Saratoga Performing Arts Center. (Yea ok so Toby is not defined by music purist as Rock&Roll)
Rock = Energy
Let’s start with the heart and soul of Rock- the ENERGY factor. A live rock concert is a high energy event filled with excitement, passion, engagement, sensual stimulation, (sights & sounds) and incredible creative design. Simply stated, it has most of the key elements that should be considered in designing a compelling customer experience. Let’s explore the energy component and how that relates to business and the customer experience. The Rock Your Customer Theme was developed out of the context that too many business interactions are often boring, mundane and impersonal transactions. Stop for a minute and try to think about the hundreds of interactions you have with businesses on a regular basis. How many are memorable ? (In a good way)
Left Brain Rock Stuff
In their book The Brand Bubble, John Gerzema and Ed Lebar, argue that the greater the brands energy, (let’s face it all companies are brands)”the greater the consideration, loyalty, pricing power, and value they command. In their research of over 40,000 brands, across 44 countries, on 70 brand metrics, they discovered that the brands that had the greatest value were those that offered “a more exciting, dynamic, and creative experience. Also included in what they defined as “The Brands Energy was vision originating from leadership, invention through product or service innovation and finally the dynamism consumers feel-”how the brand creates persona, emotion, advocacy, and evangelism.
Rock Your Customers- The Encore
One of the important learning points from attending a live show is that the experience is not made memorable by the music alone. Let’s equate the music to what your business sells be it a good or a service. When you pay $50 to $150 to attend a concert we expect quality music. What makes the performance a memorable experience is the intentional design of the show from not only a technical standpoint but the theatrical attention given to creating drama, suspense and surprise. Finally and most important in creating a lasting memory is the energy of the artist and their ability to connect with the audience in a personal way, despite playing the same set night after night. This is not unlike your employees performing the same task over and over on the stage of your business, in front of customers. Yes, your business is a stage and your employees are the ones charged with the responsibility of delivering performances that will either leave the seats empty or have your customers standing screaming for More! More! More! Please do share your thoughts &….
Rock Your Customers !
Best Bill G
