November 15, 2005
by Dylan Skriloff
Bruce Bolger, CPIM for Selling Communications, Inc. says "the power of people is the untapped power of America."
What he is referring to is the tendency American businesses have to
ignore the needs of people and simply focus on processes. Getting things done cheaper and faster is not the way to build a brand, Bolger says. Rather investing in employees and customer satisfaction is the path that leads to steady success.
Bolger explained these principles during the keynote speech at the October General Membership Luncheon attended by about 150 members.
He stressed honesty as a critical component in building customer trust. Billions are spent every year in marketing and sales and no one believes a word they hear. They will only trust you based on personal experience with your company and this is what will keep them coming back, he noted.
He and several colleagues at Northwestern University verified this theory through research. An important part of his theory is motivating your workforce. Companies like Starbucks, Jet Blue, Southwest and T-Mobile spend tens of millions of dollars just to properly train and motivate their employees and it is working for them. Bolger pointed out that Mary-Kay Cosmetics is a famous brand that spends exactly zero dollars on advertising.
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He kept the audience involved by continually asking them to raise their hands to questions about their own business practices.
Only about 20% of people in attendance raised their hands when asked if they have a plan of how to get and keep customers. About 30% have a customer database like Goldmine. He said these are two of the most important things a company can do to attract customers.
If you get a customer’s permission to send them advertisements via email, eventually something will come through that they can use. As long as you build their trust, they will be willing to listen. In the old way of saturation advertising, no one believes what they are told and no trust is built.
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