Customer service should not be a sidenote in the operational structure of an organisation, it should be an integral part of the corporate culture and value proposition to customers.

As marketing budgets shrink, traditional media advertising dwindles in reach and the balance of influence shifts from that of media buyers to empowered consumers we have to rethink the role of marketing.

Far too many multinational brands will give millions to design agencies to tweak their ‘image’ or to change the hue of their ‘branding’ yet customer service is often little more than a complaints department.

Far too many brands resort to public relations services as a band aid solution to a problem that stems from a fundamental people and customer experience issue.

As we hear the voices of consumers become louder and empowered, the more important the fundamentals become. Marketing and a PR isn’t a band aid solution for bad product design and bad customer service.

Proactive customer service not only adds value to the end product but also incites word of mouth, long term loyalty and improves brand image. Word of mouth, long term customers and branding, how much would you pay your agency for those deliverables?

Get out from behind the mechanical corporate phone system labyrinths and say hi to your customers.

For one week, instead of burying your corporate contact numbers post them on your front page like Zappos what would do you think is the worst that could happen. Perhaps you would spend more time taking care of your customers than jesting with marketing copy.

How does a company like Zappos do it? Well their customers love them, in fact 75% of their business comes from return customers. The money they would have spent on marketing is rather spent on investing in their customers and ensuring nothing but the best service.

Who do your customers listen to? The advice, suggestions, praises or horror stories of their peers or your shiny advertising campaigns?

Who are you investing in?

Photo credit, Funky Bug