Customers are not targets

By Robert Wheatley

If you think about it, words really matter. How we say things can lead to clarity or disagreement. The tone of a conversation can incite or inspire. What we say is a reflection of how we think. Our words may indeed inform our actions. What we believe is usually born out in how we verbally characterize our roles, jobs, priorities and actions.

Robert Passikoff wrote a great article on how we see customer relationships at Marketing Daily.

My point? It may be time for some honest introspection, a tune-up of sorts in how we truly, honestly view the relationships with those we wish to sell to. After all, businesses exist to serve the needs of customers and hopefully grow as a result. However is it possible that the wrong brand attitude could invoke behaviors that impede the one thing most organizations pine for – profitable growth?

The answer is yes. And it’s worth talking about. Why? Because of the seismic shift in the rules that govern how brands build customer relationships in the age of consumer control around markets constructed entirely on foundations of self-interest. The Mad Men era of “pushed” story telling worked because the power curve was aligned differently. Outbound messages could instruct consumers because they lacked the resources to learn “brand news” from other transparent sources. Business held all the cards.

Now the onus is reversed: organizations must divine the right role and pathway to gain “permission” for a brand/consumer relationship.

The entire brand/customer paradigm has flipped and so the language of business should adjust.

“You can no longer speak of your customers as faceless targets…”

The consumer is in charge and she looks for tangible and emotional value from the brands that matter to her. Mattering means important to, inspiring, connecting, worth listening to. And what’s at the foundation of mattering? It’s when what you do and say consistently and credibly conveys, “I understand your lifestyle needs and here’s how we can help.”

Brand language and behavior has to match the ethos of this new form of customer relationship building or the whole thing (your marketing plan) won’t work the way you want. Here’s how it shapes up:

Transactional relationships are about:

• Talking “at”

• Overt selling

• Persuading

• Interruptive forms of communication

• Aggregating eyeballs

• Consumers are targets to be targeted

• Message repetition

Trust based relationships are about:

• Two-way conversation

• Perpetual listening

• Pursuing lifestyle meaning and relevance

• Building rapport

• Reciprocity – big word meaning to do something unselfish

• Respect

• Authenticity and honesty

Ironically, the best brand relationships now start to take on the persona of human friendships. The language of the marketing and communications plan should reflect this awareness and understanding, lest we tempt old behaviors to return. So, treat your customers like you treat your best friends. You care, you’re interested in their lives, you want what’s best for them and it shows. Is this how you talk about your customers?

What do you think?