Thursday, April 26, 2012

It's All About Them

How many times do we have to hear, “It’s all about them?", meaning the customer. It’s all about them! It’s all about them! It’s all about them! Will that do?

So many times I see ads, marketing material, policies, you name it, that have not taken the customer into account. They scream in their messages that they’re all about you, have great customer services, would be nothing without you – but their actions speak louder than their words.

Consider the airlines – all of them! I recently went to Cuba on vacation and imagine our surprise when the flight attendant wouldn’t accept our cash. No siree, cash is no good on the airlines, only credit cards. Is this about the customer? Hardly. It’s about how much easier it is on the airline not to have to make change. And boy, was she nasty about it! (Air Transat) Did my husband and I stay thirsty? No, but that’s not the point. We didn’t want to pay by credit card!

What about all the industries that use acronyms? Give me a break! We don’t all take a course in each industry so that we can understand what all the initials are that you are using, or your industry jargon. Follow the proverbial rule – KISS, Keep It Simple Sweetie (the nice version... you know what I really mean).

And now in the day of social media and online conversations, it’s more important than ever to be clear, concise and simple. We are not living in a bubble. The internet is global so your visitors and friends are from all over the world. When you start an online conversation, remember to put it in context for your connections that may not be in your little corner of the world.

Don’t confuse people. KISS! Remember – It’s all about them!

Originally published in Work Better, Not Harder on April 26, 2012

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