No matter how much you invest in customer service, if your frontline employees do not love your brand then the customer experience will suffer.
Shwetha loves HP! No, that’s not a carving on a school ground tree nor is it a spray painting on a water tower or overpass. Shwetha is a support tech operator for Hewlett Packard. And, her style, behavior and words clearly parade her devotion to the HP brand she fronts.
My new laptop had been uprgaded to Windows 10 and Office 365. While I have a new HP color printer; my old, reliable workhorse printer is a monochrome HP LaserJet P2015dn. Not only is this printer a veritable antique as printers go, it has been out of warranty for many years. I was only able to find a universal printer driver for my new laptop. It allowed me to print, but not print front and back like the printer did with my old laptop. I finally surrendered and gave HP Technical Support an evening call.
I hit the jackpot!
I got Shwetha! She was warm, clear and patient. She informed me that since my HP printer was out of warranty there would normally be a charge for her technical services. But, she really wanted me to have a good experience with my HP and was willing to help me without a charge. We began troubleshooting. She was noticeably passionate about the product and my success with it. After numerous tests we learned I had not checked the proper port in my setup. With that, she made it work perfectly.
Now, let me ask you a question. If you really, really loved a product, you would want to make sure it was delivering perfectly, right? Shwetha closed our conversation with, “May I call you back tomorrow just to make sure you are happy with how your HP printer is working?”
Let me remind you this was a free call on an out-of-warranty product…a call driven by the deep brand allegiance of call center tech rep. It was as if my old printer had been actually crafted by Shwetha herself. The next day she called just as she promised. And, her love affair with HP got passed on to me. I would never own any other brand!
The flame of brand loyalty can be fanned with clever advertising and superior customer service. However, few marketing features fuel customer trust and loyalty more than hearing the brand’s frontline ambassadors communicating devotion for their brand.
What’s the secret?
It means ensuring the frontline knows the brand’s benefits, not just its features. It includes investing in product/service employee education. It means leaders who model brand-loving practices expected of employees. And, it involves making sure employees get to see the new ads before they are aired to the public.
What are ways you can help your team show more Shwetha-like pride in your brand of products and services?
About the Author
Chip R. Bell is a renowned keynote speaker and the author of service national and international best-selling books. His newest book is Kaleidoscope: Delivering Innovative Service That Sparkles. He can be reached at chipbell.com.
