Good Will - Good Thinking
	Last week I discussed the value of real life branding — the important role staff play as branding channels themselves and the importance of carefully considering how your company can identify new, smart and cost-effective branding opportunities — in creating your brand’s clear point of difference. Here now is a story that exemplifies the value of “real life branding”. Two or three years ago, in the Mediterranean Turkish city of Antalya, a luxury resort was being built. It so happened that the biggest economic crisis in Turkish history struck, making it difficult for such an enterprise to kick off. Just as the hotel was being prepared for its grand opening, the Russian submarine, the “Kursk”, sank in the northern Arctic Sea. Its entire crew perished, as I’m sure you remember. Anxious to offer help in the wake of this tragedy, the CEO of the hotel company contacted the Russian Embassy and arranged one-week vacations for the families of the lost submariners. A TV channel learned of the gesture and produced a story about it.
	Download (PDF Format) »

	Do You Provide Customer Disservice
	I\'ll bet you\'ve called some corporation, been connected to the call centre, and been put on hold. After what seems like hours of waiting, you\'re told your call is very important. You\'re a very valuable customer. All this adulation is expressed by some automated voice. Great consolation! Not. Once you are finally connected with a live person, you realize the operator has no authority. Next, you\'re transferred; put on hold, flattered again by that automated voice, connected, and transferred again. Finally, you hang up, no better off than you were an hour ago when the phone odyssey began.
	Download (PDF Format) »