About a year and a half ago, my husband and I switched mobile carriers. We did it primarily to save money, as the one we were with was getting crazy expensive. We knew that coverage wouldn’t be as great, but we aren’t world travelers. So as long as we could text and surf the web within the 15 mile radius in which we live our lives, we didn’t care. We wanted to save money.
The actual plan was significantly cheaper. The phones, however, were not. And by the time you added phone payments, and taxes and services, our monthly payments were the same. This was not properly explained to me at the time of signup. Nor was it properly explained to me that at the end of our 18 month “lease” we would still owe quite a bit of money on our phones. On top of that, our data connection was poor and our phones consistently dropped calls even at our house. These little surprises made me angry, to say the least. But after a couple fruitless calls to customer service, I eventually just gave up trying to get solutions.
I read just the other day that it’s not the customers that are complaining that you need to be worried about, it’s the customers that aren’t saying anything. This is 100% true. I never even talked to a rep about the bad connections because I was so peeved at them for scamming me on price. I just wanted to pay off the phones and switch back to my original carrier. And that’s exactly what I would have done. Except…
Today I had to call customer service. And I was lit. The woman on the other end was very professional. She listened to my complaints. Some she was able to resolve, others she explained more thoroughly so they weren’t AS annoying as I had thought. She brought my anger down from a 9 to a 5 (since the insanity that was the 2016 presidential election, I can’t seem to get it down below that). I don’t love our current carrier. I’m not going to start recommending them to all my friends. But one interaction with a competent customer service rep got me to rethink my decision to leave, at least for the time being.
Readers, do not underestimate the power of one positive connection with a client. Every time you pick up the phone, send an email or type a text, assume that THAT is the interaction that could make or break the relationship with that customer. Also, keep an eye on those silent customers. The ones who aren’t interacting with your brand at all, who are placing fewer orders, who aren’t recommending you the way other clients do. Reach out to them and find out what you can do to turn them into brand enthusiasts.
Have you ever had an encounter with customer service or an account rep completely change your view of a company? Tell us the story in the comments below.
Download the Fathers Day Order Form and either email it to info@onestepservices.com or fax it to 949-452-0381
A simple, classic Father’s Day postcard that is perfect for your social list or farm. We can also convert this to an EDDM size.
This lead generation postcard is Father’s Day themed. Use light humor, an adorable picture and the upcoming holiday to encourage recipients to call you for their real estate needs.
I’m a little late to the party, but I finally saw the live action Beauty and the Beast last weekend. You guys, I’m OBSESSED! The costumes, the music, the scenery. Emma Watson and that spunky, kind, fearless personality. Dan Stevens with that voice and those eyes! I love it more than a grown woman probably should but, whatever. The world is a dark place, just let me be happy.
So why am I gushing about a Disney film on a marketing blog? I’ll be honest, I was actively looking for an excuse to research the movie and listen to the soundtrack while at work. BUT ALSO, it occurred to me that remaking a movie is a lot like rebranding a company. And since the remaking of Beauty and the Beast was successful, I figured there were some lessons that could be applied to rebranding a company, something we do a lot of here at One Step Services.
Make new friends, but keep the old. I’ve watched enough bonus features to know that without composer Alan Menken and lyricist/executive producer Howard Ashman, Beauty and the Beast wouldn’t have been the blockbuster that it was. So it makes sense that they brought Menken back to rearrange original songs and compose new ones for the live action remake.* The new songs fit seamlessly with the original and the movie is once again a musical masterpiece.
When rebranding your company, think very hard about what elements you want to keep and what you want to ditch. Then decide who of the “old friends” is going to help you maintain this new vision, and who is going to detract from it. And whether you’re keeping the old or hiring the new, make sure everyone is loyal to and passionate about the brand. You’re going to have a hard enough time getting clients on board with this new brand, you don’t want to also be fighting employees, vendors and business partners.
If it’s broken, fix it. As a child, Beauty and the Beast was perfect. But rewatching it as an adult, I notice a couple of plot holes. Like, why exactly does Belle fall in love with Beast? She was terrified of him and angry, and all he has to do to win her over is save her from some wolves and throw a snowball at her? It sounds more like Stockholm Syndrome than love. Apparently I was not the only person who had this thought because the character of Beast is much more developed in the new movie, as is his relationship with Belle. There were several other plot holes that were patched up in the remake.
Before you rebrand, it’s important to know what’s working for your company and what isn’t. The rebrand should fix the things that aren’t working. Perhaps your logo looks outdated. Maybe your customer service policy needs to be changed to better fit your new customer database. Maybe your company mission has changed and you need a new slogan to reflect that. Maybe you are recovering from a major PR fiasco. Whatever the case, look at the rebrand as an opportunity to fix what is broken.
Test your audience. In an interview, Dan Stevens explained that he was originally topless when he transformed back into the prince. However, the test audience said that was inappropriate for a kids movie.** So they reshot it.
Once you decide what needs to be fixed and you come up with a solution, you need to make sure that solution is going to be effective for you. You’ve got to test it. Obviously, you can’t please everyone, nor should you try. But it’s always a good idea to run tests to make sure you are getting things right with most people.
If you’re ready to rebrand yourself and/or your company, give One Step Services a call at 949-587-5301. Come in for a free consultation with our graphic designers who can help create a new visual representation of your new brand. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go listen to Evermore one million times and cry at my desk.
*Side Note: Howard Ashman died 8 months before the original animated Beauty and the Beast was released. The story of how his battle with AIDS affected his creation of Beauty and the Beast is fascinating and heartbreaking. Another interesting tidbit, the lyricist for the new songs on the new Beauty and the Beast was Tim Rice, who worked with Menken on songs for Aladdin. So, still an old friend of Disney. See? I told you I watch a lot of DVD bonus features.
**Boo! Those people are no fun!
