Personality Marketing Get more business, more easily, with more fun, by being 100% YOU!

OK, OK - I know.  You might be thinking I’m rather over-using these guys as an example, but I really do think they ‘get it’ far more than 99.999% of small businesses out there.  (And no, I don’t get anything for recommending them or talking about them).

So why another post about Clarity?  Well, despite their excellent site, they’ve been rather tardy in getting the stuff to me.  And, until just now, I’d had no explanation of why.  Not good (sorry John!)

But when I got the explanation, yet again, it manages to be personal and leaves me with a warm feeling.  Compensates me without being asked.  Manages to get in a plug for another site of theirs.

Hell, even their ‘email disclaimer’ has personality!  Check this out:

“Hello Gordon,

Well, first, thanks for the comments left with the order.  As the scribe responsible for the pleasing pages, I am much increased by your words.

In an oddly self-fulfilling model, here is that personal connection to which you aluded! 

But it’s not with mere pleasantries that I’m writing here.  Indeed, as my imaginary friend Gollum would say, it hurts us.  Hurts us it does, to write about this;

You’ll doubtless have noticed that you don’t yet have your ordered goodies in your hands.  Very poor show.  The order was delayed by a late arrival from the NTE5 manufacturers.  All very well, but we’re supposed to let you know if any kind of a hold-up becomes likely, and indeed usually do.  Not this time though I see, and you’ve been left squarely in the dark about where your stuff must have got to.  Very sorry!

I’ve just refunded the shipping charge to your card since we didn’t in fact, well, ship it.  Not in anything I’d call a decent time.

So, as a couple of us are in tidying up such loose ends this evening, you’ll get a “shipped” mail soon (or recently if Chris is faster than I am at

typing) when it’s completed, so it will physically leave here in tomorrow’s post.

Sorry again for the rubbish delay, and again thank you for your business - and comments! *pleased*

John

John Doyle

Director & Operations

Clarity

===============================================

Blatant plug for a web site from the Clarity stable (if you like that sort of thing): http://www.thebadwolf.co.uk

And our very good coffee drinking neighbours; www.scrapyardsculptures.co.uk

Email Disclaimers are such an ugly, unread footnote, and all too often are bigger than the e-mail itself! So ours is appended at; http://www.clarity.it/email.htm This mail’s subject to all the disclaiming therein.”

Again, a question for you.  When you screw up, do you hold your hand up, admit you’ve been rubbish, and offer unasked for compensation? 

Or do you  offer a ‘boilerplate’ apology like “We’re sorry for the late shipment of your order, and will endeavour to get it to you as soon as we can.”?

Or do you just hope the customer doesn’t notice and try and fix it quietly? (I sincerely hope not!)

Like John admits, the original service could have been better but you can rest assured whenever anyone asks where I got my stuff from, although I might mention it was delayed, I’ll also mention the apology and compensation.

Genuine recognition of a problem when it occurs, taking responsibility, and offering meaningful compensation can turn a potentially negative experience into a happy customer.

Do you do the same?

Posted under Marketing, Shining Examples

You might remember me talking about how I think Clarity IT is a shining example of the kind of marketing approach I’m talking about in the post “Getting a little Clarity in your marketing“.

Well, I just had my standard ‘your order has been shipped’ email, but I also got a more personal (and fun) email to go with it.  Yet again, a great illustration of how to communicate your personality to your customers:

“Dear Mr. Gordon Mullan,

Hello.

Your order’s been shipped.

Please take a moment to read the notes here too.

Even as you read this, postal and carrier workers will be dedicating their efforts to making sure your goodies arrive intact and with all haste.

YOU WILL NEED TO SIGN FOR DELIVERY.

If the Postie misses you he’ll leave a card with details of how to collect your package from your local RM Collections Office or request a re-delivery.

Recorded Delivery items are held for 5 working days, and Special Delivery items for 3 working days before coming back to Clarity.  Please note you will need to pay for the cost of shipping again if we need to resend an order which comes back to us.

*Larger orders sent via a carrier service operate slightly different pickup/redelivery arrangements - see your Missed Delivery Card for specific details.

Thanks very much for your business, and especially for your money.  What would also be great would be your repeat business in the future, your referral businsess from your mates/colleagues/kinfolk, and any well placed name-dropping in any forums you frequent.  “

Here’s a question for you - if you send out any kind of confirmation emails, do yours have this much personality?  If not, try putting some in - it all helps differentiate you from the next business along!

Remember - marketing isn’t just advertising.  It happens every time you have an interaction with the customer, even if that contact is automated.

If you use an e-commerce or shopping cart system, edit your confirmation emails today to put a little bit of personality into them - it only takes a few minutes, but it makes them seem that much more…well, personal.

(Not to mention more likely to get read!)

Go on - do it now.  The more personal and friendly you can make it, the better.

Posted under Marketing, Shining Examples

Sometimes I come across websites from people that just ‘get it’.  The guys at Clarity IT are one of the few, and a shining example of what I’m trying to get through the skull of every small business owner out there.

I think they have a brilliant, hilarious and devastatingly effective website (I just ordered some of their ADSL sockets a few days ago).

I started Personality Marketing around one very strong belief/desire – to get small businesses to put some ****ing personality into their marketing!

Basically, if I have to read one more one-man operation writing “We were established in 1998 and strive to provide a complete, end-to-end solution to all your <whatever> needs” I’m gonna SCREAM! 

You’re a small business – people do business with you because of who YOU are – so BE YOU for God’s sake!  If you spoke to your customers the way your website/marketing materials speak to your customers, they’d be asleep inside 30 seconds! 

So what if you piss a few people off – they were probably not a good fit for you in the first place, and you’d have hated working with them anyway.

Whew – rant over (well, until the next time I see the same thing).

The problem is, when I try to explain to people that ‘personality sells’, they get all nervous and “ooh no, couldn’t possibly speak to our customers like that on our website”.  Well, I’d like to hold John Doyle, and the Clarity IT website, up as a shining example to say “oh yes you can – and do very nicely out of it as well”.

I think what John does, and how he says it, is the absolute, pretty much perfect embodiment of “Personality Marketing” – and I LOVE it!

Keep it up John – you deserve wild, unconstrained success in everything you do.

Posted under Shining Examples