We’re all in the service business, and the only reason our businesses exist is because customers buy from us. Yet sometimes brands fall out of focus and lose sight of what it takes to be a leader.
Below, I have made a list of the top five ways companies kill their brand:
- No real thought goes into the brand. Next time you are about to make a major purchase, ask the salesperson why you should by from their company vs. a competitor. If he or she begins to stumble through an answer, that’s your answer – there is no reason.
- Under trained, or worse, grouchy people answer the phones. If there is anyone who needs to be radiant with happiness and enthusiasm, it’s the people who answer the phones – usually the first human touch point of the brand. When enthusiastic and helpful people answer your phones, you have an enthusiastic and helpful brand. When a grouch answers your phones, you’re telling callers (customers) they are a nuisance.
- Employees aren’t properly trained. Nothing is more disappointing than talking to a CSR or associate who can’t answer simple questions. And nothing can be more aggravating than being transferred from one department to another because nobody wants to deal with your issue or knows where to put you.
- Poor leadership. Employees are supposed to be brand-ambassadors, yet most budgets allow $0 for leadership training. Employees who respect and enjoy working for their managers will bend over backwards for customers.
- Claims are made that cannot be backed up, or are simply untrue. When a company makes lofty claims about its product or service delivery, customers will call on those claims with high expectations. And if the company falls short on those expectations, the brand is instantly damaged. It would be much better for a company to make no claim at all and pleasantly surprise than to set itself up for failure.
