Will Your Keep Your Brand Promise this Year?

Keep Your Brand PromiseWe’re a week into the new year. Most executives are back at work new, eager to seize the opportunities presented by a fresh start. While budgets, revenue goals and new strategic initiatives are top of mind, your brand promise probably isn’t.

This unwritten contract with customers, one that says that you’ll deliver on expectations, is something many CEOs take as a given. “Of course we do what we say!

But do you?

Why brand promise matters

A brand promise is more than an exercise in marketing strategy. You may have a fancy plaque on the wall outside the board room, but customers don’t read that. They read your marketing messages and your employees’ actions.

You brand promise is a commitment to customers that their experience with your company will fulfill their needs and satisfy their aspirations.

And that’s where so many companies fall short.

Not intentionally, of course. We all plan to deliver, but something happens on the route from strategy to reality. Departmental conflicts arise. Employee attitudes get off track. Workload pressures force shortcuts, and customers lose out. Communication breaks down, and good intentions get derailed.

Falling short is a lot easier than rising to the top precisely because it happens when we’re not looking. Turn your attention for a moment and that thing we call “real life” intervenes.

How can you stop it?

People aren’t perfect; they’re human. They make mistakes, lose their tempers and advance their own agendas. It’s normal.

That’s good news, because it means if you’re aware of internal issues and self-created obstacles, you can prevent them, or at least accommodate them.

Knowing what to watch for allows you to be vigilant in creating and defending the positive customer experience you want buyers to have. Find the weak spots then employ training and processes that support your intentions. Follow-up with customers regularly and ensure you make the grade.

Keep your eye on the prize

Making a resolution to put more focus on customers this year will prove to be a profitable choice, if you keep the commitment. Research shows that customer-focused companies make more money, retaining customers and enjoying more referrals and brand awareness.

If you want to grow, watching the numbers is important. You need to focus on sales, expenses and profit. Just remember that customers drive the top line. To keep them buying, it’s imperative to fulfill your brand promise every day.

So instead of assuming it’s a squishy thing that isn’t relevant on your day-to-day operations, add a metric for “Keeping Our Brand Promise” to your dashboard and track it.

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