It is both tempting and necessary to adjust business services and offerings moving forward. Not only when there is a difficult period of time in the economy, but as the world, markets and technology evolve over time anyway.
We’re all hearing how businesses must pivot and make noise in the market to stand out. They especially must clearly communicate with their existing and potential customers – Twist and Shout!
At Paradigm, we take behavioral economics, core values, brand personality, and processes seriously. There is a temptation to “reinvent” your business, but here is some advice that you may find useful in the coming weeks, months, and even years.
People want to work with people more than a business. If you’ve been successful, more than likely it has just as much or more to do with the way you treat people and the trust you’ve built with them. Unless of course you are in a commoditized industry and are just racing to the cheapest solution – if that is you, rethink that strategy, as it is a losing game.
So how can you Twist and Shout appropriately? The reality is it’s different for every business and industry, but here is a snapshot of things to not lose sight of:
Never leave your core values. Be who you are at the core – what you stand for, what gets you up in the morning – and mostly, what benefits others, not just yourself. That means you are helping them solve a problem so they can be successful.
Your approach and distinctives may need to be adjusted over time as well, but be slow to throw the baby out. Your approach to customers and your internal processes have made you successful – so look at adjustments, additions/subtractions, but be cautious about scrapping everything.
Services, products and delivery methods should be constantly reviewed and adjusted – that is where we recommend you focus. Experiment and adjust – but point back to items 1 and 2 above. They are key. No matter how great an offering, if you aren’t trusted and don’t provide a true benefit, you won’t succeed.
You will hear that this is a great time to show how much you care, to provide empathy, and to show emotion. If you haven’t been doing that already, you are likely to come off as pandering and even worse, manipulative.
Look at most car commercials right now – video footage of people at home, shots of open roads, narration with high empathy (and saying all of the words we’re all tired of and I refuse to use in this posting), and then how they are in this with you, blah, blah, blah….do you believe them? Most turn it right into a sales pitch. Do you trust them? Do they truly have your best interest in mind? You be the judge, but I find it hard to trust many of them as very few consistently have shown they care about more than a sale.
Be careful in the emails, social media, and advertising that you push out in the coming months. People want to see the best in each other, but they aren’t stupid.
Solve a problem and ensure your customers that you have their best in mind. When you re-open or as you pursue new opportunities think through those filters – see opportunities not just for financial gain but to truly solve a problem with their best interest in mind.
People make what sometimes seem to be irrational decisions, but they are usually pretty straightforward - they want to trust the business they are transacting with. Put that first and then Twist and Shout as appropriate. Be thoughtful and see opportunities to better your business relationships.
Bottom line:
Stick with your core values no matter what
Seek to solve a problem and benefit your customer
Look at new and easy ways to connect
Build trust through empathy but don’t pander or manipulate
See opportunities to serve and solve those problems
