Their touch point, frame of reference, what gets their interest…is the ‘human experience’. Period.

Today’s American consumers (whose ever changing life stages must be taken into consideration) start their relationship with your business by examining and experiencing your intent and motivation. Consumers interact with brands like they do with other humans.  Since they highly value authenticity and transparency in relationships, all the more this is true regarding brand communication.

This is why your story…your purpose, your heart should be at the core of your branding. Your brand needs to be able to ‘touch’ the human heart in order to even get consideration in the first place. That is why sales pitches, hype, fast talking and slick in-your-face intrusive advertising does NOT work any longer.

Show me your interesting story (your human touch point) and you can call it a branding or anything else you like.

Character shows up in those little things most take for granted like keeping your word especially when it’s inconvenient, taking personal responsibility even if it cost you, returning phone calls, looking out for others well being before your own.

Basically, the way I see it is business success in this new economy will depend largely on your intentions, your motives. That is the way it used to be and that is how it should be in my books.

Everyone gets it you are in business to make a profit but what are your intentions and motives towards your customer, your employees, your vendors, your competitors, your community, your country?

That is the question and observation on the minds of today’s new consumer. Gone are the days of “Sell, Sell, Sell!!” Consumers have so much choice when it comes to deciding who they will spend their money with. You can’t rest on ‘old model’ business thinking and processes any longer if you want to ensure they choose you to spend their hard earned money with.

The intent and motive of your heart (your business, corporation, whatever started in the heart of someone) is going to be a deciding factor on what side of the “Great Business Divide’ occurring now.

What I am talking about here as to having a ‘Good Heart’ should be the basics for anyone in business. If it’s not…the new consumer emerging today will demand it and if you don’t genuinely deliver, you will have a hard time with business success in the 21st century.

He indicated a busy businessman would pay $20 month to have their Facebook, Twitter, Plaxo or Bebo account updated, messages replied and so on and this would be way cheaper than hiring a new employee in-house or contracting independent U.S workers.

Sounds reasonable right? Well I guess it is if you want a surefire way to go out of business quickly in this new day and age. Look…haven’t we had enough experience with what a bad idea this greed driven approach is yet?

The notion you can use ‘canned’ conversations, get rich quick schemes, famous quotes, and other non relevant chatter to build real relationships with customers in the ‘socialsphere’ is just plain gimmick and lazy approach thinking to try and capture consumers. People are way too smart for this!

Today’s consumer not only can read right through this type of hype and pitch…they will absolutely loathe you for it.

Am I saying having a 3^rd party service your social media marketing is a bad thing? Absolutely not! In fact, it can be a brilliant action on your part and certainly position your business probably faster and more effectively than you can on your own.

What I am saying here is don’t think you can be lazy or half stepping this stuff.  The work necessary to provide targeted and relevant content that is sincere and meaningful on behalf of your business rather than a bunch of noise, will and should rest on your shoulders. That means you have to be willing as well as sincerely committed to doing the work it takes to successfully engage with your customers and potential clients in the online social scene. It should be placed as a priority right up there with the other things you are doing to grow your business.

In my experience working with clients it saddens me to see many are not willing nor do they see the importance of truly committing to adding Social Marketing into their everyday marketing mix and strategies. And don’t think that I’m finding this with just small business. The folks over at Social Times posted an article on this very thing… 50% of Companies Entering Social Media Have Plan. Their take on a couple of recent reports on this topic revealed even large corporations are not investing their time, money and efforts to create meaningful strategies and plans in order to ensure their company is emotionally connecting with their target markets. Many think you can rest on your brand, just ‘show up’ or put on a charade to appear you are in the trenches with 21st century marketing and they are in with the customer.

Not true! Today’s new business era will no longer support or tolerate status quo mindsets and approaches. Just like having an offline relationship takes lots of personal investment, so it is with online. No free rides for marketers. No free rides for business. People do not care about your brand like you think they do. This is the age of the great awaking for anyone in business. Integrity, intent, motives and transparency are the tell-tell signs of what a business really wants from and with a customer.

What about you? Does your business have a plan, well defined strategies for incorporating Social Media into your marketing and business processes? If not, would you if you knew how to get started? Let me hear from you what you feel you need in order to transport your business into the 21^st century way of doing business.

This is a great example of how creating and leading with relevant stories built around the lifestyles of your target market can be a hit like the campaign Toyota did with this targeting young, hip families.

They created an entire  “Swagger Wagon” destination to promote the Toyota Sienna. Notice they led with the lifestyle story not pushing boring specs on vehicle MPG’s, safety features, etc. No! They led with what today’s hip, young family does on a daily basis and how the Sienna is apart of the things that go on in their lifestyle.

Was it successful? You bet it is. They have had over a million views on their YouTube page alone and thousands of positive comments. It’s being shared around the globe in social networks and blogs (like myself) and other digital media sources.

NOW THAT IS 21^ST CENTURY MARKETING AND SELLING!

Website: http://toyotaswaggerwagon.com

YouTube Page: http://www.youtube.com/sienna

You may not be Toyota but you too can sell by leading with stories rather than the product or service you sell.

Ahh the mature woman! Something all of us girls grow up to be…well hopefully. As I have embarked on this leg of my personal journey I have noticed more than ever the lack of significance placed on my role, generation and participation in the marketplace.

Is it marketers have counted me out? Do they think I am over the ‘hill’ and no longer am a substanable source of revenue for their bottomline?

It could just be our fascination and even obsession with “being young” but whatever it is…marketers that ignore this market segment are pretty stupid in my books.

November 2009 a white paper titled “The Rise of the Real Mom” was published by Advertising Age written by Marissa Miley and Ann Mack. It’s a refreshing look at just who today’s mom really is and what she really wants. A clear indicator of how out of touch companies are with women in general not to mention mature women!

In one of my favorite blogs covering marketing to women (Wonder Branding published by Michele Miller) she bares witness of how mature women are being undeserved in the marketplace and of all areas…in fashion!

In her article Forgotten Online: Older Women it was stated…

“When asked why the fashion industry continues to focus on ages 18-34, David Grant of ShopFlick (and formerly of Fox TV) responded:

It felt right because it’s what I’ve been doing all my career.”

Mr. Grant is 53.

Not to take the fashion crowd too much to task for virtually ignoring women 35 and older (especially ages 55-64, the fastest growing segment), but too often it seems that the industry can’t see the forest for the trees. The Internet, combined with societal shifts and a changing economy, will be a major force in the “great shake-out” of companies that do what they’ve always done, vs. businesses flexible enough to invent (and re-invent) themselves in ways that cater to the majority market [...]

I love what she said about the ‘great shake-out” of companies! Too bad many of these companies are not listening and not willing to transform. I for one have seen this coming for awhile now and believe we will see some major trouble in the retail sector very soon.

Mature women have been major contributors to the prosperity of business in our country. Yet, I have been seeing a sort of ‘hater’ attitude towards the mature generations going on out there on blogs and media sources and certainly by the fact companies are not focusing much of their marketing on the mature client thee days.

This really disturbs me because despite our generation’s downfalls…we have made and continue to make significant contributions to our world. We certainly made significant contributions in the pockets of the marketplace! Why now are marketers and companies undeserving us? Especially women.

I recently read a post titled ‘Welcome to the frustration decade’ on one of my favorite blogs by one of my favorite forward thinking leaders in 21st century business, Seth Godin. In this particular post he lists two of the most important trends he sees for this next decade one of which is is titled ‘Frustration’.

He states…baby boomers are getting old. Dreams are fading, and so is health. Boomers love to whine and we love to imagine that we’ll live forever and accomplish everything. This is the decade that reality kicks in. And, to top it off, savings are thin and resource availability isn’t what it used to be. A lot of people ate their emergency rations during the last decade. Look for this frustration to be acted out in public, and often[...]

While I agree and even marvel at many of Seth’s observations, I have to say this comment somewhat rubbed me wrong because it joins ranks with those persuasions that have sort of thrown us baby boomers out with the bath water.

The point I am trying to make here is that women have radically changed!  She is smarter than ever, more financially stable than ever, more savvy than ever, more connected than ever and certainly a market segment to be respected and served. Businesses that don’t welcome and embrace the mature woman consumer do not deserve our business. She is not your grandma of old. Surely there are plenty of new businesses out there looking for a profitable niche to serve? Well…come and get it!

For many of us it conjures up memories and emotions of wholesomeness, family, fall colors, great food and of course, being thankful to God for all of the blessings we have.

Despite the fact Thanksgiving is just about being swept off the map and overshadowed as a major holiday these days…it will always be a significant holiday I will respect and honor in my lifetime.

I believe Thanksgiving 2009 offers up a special opportunity to those of us in business. No doubt it’s been a tough year for many of us here in the U.S. despite what the news says. I was just reading in my local paper that most folks say (that’s you and I not the talking heads) that the economy hasn’t hit bottom yet.  In fact, many were saying things like things like …

Don’t buy the bull! Anybody who thinks things are turning around is living in a dream world.

Worst yet to come. Hold on to your wallets folks. It’s only starting.

Something is very wrong in America. Have you ever known a federal government to do anything efficiently?

This one really hit home with me…

Stimulus didn’t work. No matter the media is reporting unemployment rose to 10.2 percent in October 2009, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The economy shed 190,000 jobs in October for a total of 7.3 million jobs lost since the recession began in December 2007. That does not show any signs things are getting better. What are all those people doing to make a living now?

You can agree or disagree with these views but the point is the U.S. has had a tough year and many businesses have seriously felt the effects of those 7.3 million job losses and all the other things going on in the 2009 economy.

I point all this out to lead to what I call a “blessing in disguise for those of us in business”…and that blessing is wrapped up in this year’s Thanksgiving!

Why do I say this?

Well for starters, this holiday can be an extremely helpful milestone for us to look back over our should as to what the past 11 months held so we can learn from it. At the same it can be the pivotal point for looking forward to the new year and getting our bearings to make adjustments before the onslaught of the mad rush and stress the Christmas holidays and the New Year always bring no matter how hard we try to fight it off.

Think about it. If this is a part of your 2009 strategy, this alone could help transform your business for 2010!

But that’s not all. Thanksgiving also offers us the opportunity to reevaluate the heart of our business. What I mean is, in case you haven’t noticed, customers no longer will not accept lip service, status quo, missions statements, slick advertising or gimmicks and all that phony baloney stuff. What they want are businesses to walk their talk, demonstrate you deliver what you promise you will, be treated with respect and such. They want to be loved!

I know that may sound corny but it’s been said its one of the greatest need we humans have and we do some crazy things to try and get it. Why not sincerely give it to your customers… if it’s what they want? Thanksgiving can be the perfect time for you to fall in love with your customers again. It’s also a great time to redefine what kinds of customers you really enjoy working with too you know.

In addition, Thanksgiving is steeped in transition. Fall to winter, end to new beginning, and fast pace to slowing down. See the opportunities in transitions.

Every business that wants to succeed in the 21^st century needs to get very good at transitions. Business will never be the same as it was and as it continues to evolve and morph just like the seasons do, I believe anyone in business who does not embrace change in this new business era will likely not make it over the long haul. What transitions will you employ in your business for 2010? Keep in mind; transition without creative strategy is just busyness. Thanksgiving is a good time to seriously think about this and start planning.

Lastly, but not least…Thanksgiving 2009 holds incredible opportunity to transform your business because its very purpose is about being thankful and blessing others. Despite what has gone on with this lousy economy this year…anyone still in business, both large or small has many reasons to be thankful.

This has been one of the toughest times to be in business this country has seen in a long, long, time. Being thankful for our business, our employees (if we have them), or customers and vendors just does something magical to your outlook and purpose for being in business.

Business is people serving people. That’s why it even exists! People are at their best when they are thankful and that most certainly translates into their businesses.

Man, I love Thanksgiving and all the blessings God has bestowed upon me even though I have had one tough year in business. I also love I can have a business in the greatest country in the world, America.

Have a very ‘blessed’ Thanksgiving everyone.

Some are really very entertaining, dancing and performing while others, well…just spin the sign.

If you’re anything like me, I bet you have even felt sorry for them, especially when they are out in the hot sun or cold weather.

Coming home from grocery shopping this week I saw a spinner for Little Caesars’. He was spinning a sign that was shaped as a guitar of all things which may have been because we are in the Music City area (Nashville, TN), but whatever the idea was it was a creative display. As I passed the guy listening to his iPod and acting like he was playing that guitar sign, I began to ponder the ‘sign spinners’ and add up a few things I have come to realize about these hearty souls that quite frankly, made me take a second look at them and made me size them up a bit differently.

One thing I realized was this is not a job for the faint at heart. It takes a pretty special person to stand out there in the open as cars race by stuffed with people whom you may know and plenty of those you don’t.

You gotta be able to handle the fact some of those faces blurring by are giving you looks filled with judgments, some flat out laughing at you and making fun of you and others clearly giving you looks of pity or ignoring you all together.

You also have to be a person who is not led by their pride or overly concerned about what others think. Add to that, you have to be a hard worker. Try standing out there for hours on end holding, moving and spinning an over-sized piece of cardboard or whatever it’s made of!

And here’s the kicker…I’ve noticed most all of them are young people…out there hustling and working for a living. Most of these jobs pay a measly $7.50 to high end $10 bucks an hour but despite the low pay these ambitious young people are out there gracing our corners with signs that their employers are sure will bring herds of customers rushing in to spend their money (I’ll address this in a minute).

I came across an actual ad on Craigslist today for a sign spinner. Check it out…

ABC Computer Minus is looking for multiple sign holders/movers (as in moving around, standing up and rotating/flipping a sign) for the following dates and times: Friday-Sun, Aug 7-9, hours and shifts will vary from 9 a.m.-8 p.m. on Friday, 8 a.m.- 8 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m.-6 p.m. on Sunday @ $7.50 an hr. Come by the store to fill out an application between now and Friday, July 31 between the hours of 10 a.m.-8 p.m. This is a temporary position for the dates listed above. Energy, crazy wigs and bright clothing are a must! No phone calls. Only in-person applications will be considered. Easy money!
Compensation: $7.50 hr.

See what I mean.  Wigs? Bright clothing? Oh yeah…that’ll bring us in to buy!

Anyway, back to my point. As I said at the beginning of my conversation on this topic, I think the sign spinner type of person is actually the kind of employee many businesses should be looking for.

They are young, ambitious; roll-up their sleeves kind of people who are not afraid of hard work and doing what it takes for the job. Notice I didn’t say make a living because truthfully anyone having to accept these kinds of wage is NOT making a living.

In my opinion, I think it’s time businesses take a second look at their old model hiring standards and systems which have long been widely used.

Why? Because many times those systems are broken when it comes to helping a business get the best type of candidate for the job. Those systems are built to lock a company into same-minded type people and skill sets and it basically discourages hiring ‘mold breakers’ whom every business needs a few at least on their team to compete in this new business era.

Just as the landscape of 21^st century business has changed drastically, so has today’s workforce needs. Businesses willing to hire outside of their industry types and requirements will have the added advantage of bringing in fresh new thinking and ‘creatives’ which every business needs today.

I’ll give you an example of what I mean. I have personally seen many companies post jobs in the digital marketing field of which I have been working in for over 13 years now and they almost always insist on an individual who has a degree in marketing. I’m not knocking a person who has a degree but the digital media and marketing world has not been around long and it’s ever changing. In addition, marketing online is very different and always evolving compared to offline methods.

The person who has hands-on, real time business experience in this sector is most likely a person who has been involved in it from the beginning and you will not find many of those folk’s with degrees in digital marketing or media. But they are worth their weight in gold because they have knowledge that is only found at the grassroots level. And just for the record, I’m not saying these folks are uneducated. I’m saying they are the early adapters who jumped in and have been apart of pioneering what we now call the online world. They have grown up with the digital business scene and this is an advantage that cannot be learned from books.

In summary, Spinners are Winners!

Oh, as for those businesses that are using the sign spinner approach as a way to market their products and services…I would have to say the majority of you are not only out of touch with your customer…you are also exhibiting tactics of the desperate. Waving shiny bright things to lure the dumb customer in, really?

I, like most Americans have grown so weary of the unbelievably bad customer service in the everyday marketplace both online and off in this country.

Until recently, we as consumers did not have a very easy and effective way to share with the masses our experiences nor were we very successful in getting attention to our plight regarding bad service and products from the very companies we had the conflict with. The old “on hold forever 800 number” was many times the only recourse we could take against these offending businesses.

That was until technology put the tools in the consumer’s hands that gave us access to the masses and the ability to put wings on our voices so we can finally have our say and it matter.

Business must wake up to the fact their reputation belongs to the people just as their brand does. This is why I say gone are the days of treating your customer anyway you please. We will not stand for that anymore. You will find yourself out of business!

If bad customer experiences being broadcast to the masses via social networks can seal your fate as a business, just imagine what great customer experiences shared through this medium can do for your business!

I have just such an experience I just gotta tell you about.

This past 4^th of July 7, 2009 I spent a better part of my holiday celebrating one of my grandson’s 2^nd birthday. Yep, he was born on the 4^th of July!

The event would be held at our local Chuck E. Cheese here in Franklin, TN. Spending the 4^th of July at Chuck E. Cheese didn’t really excite me even if it was my grandson’s birthday but none the less, I was going to make the best of it.

My daughter and son-in-law had made the reservations for the party online. I really did not know what to expect because it had been years since I had set foot in a Chuck E. Cheese anywhere. We arrived promptly at twelve noon and were ushered to our table which was all setup beautifully with balloons, décor, plates and cups. I thought to myself, well looks like they were expecting us alright, this is a good start.

It was just a few moments as we begin deciding where we were all going to sit when a very friendly employee showed up and she informed us she was our personal hostess for the party. From the moment we entered to the moment we left (2 ½ hours later!) we experienced some of the best customer service I have seen since I last was in California year eating at my favorite burger joint In-n-Out Burger.

Every single employee including Chuck E. Cheese himself (he made a live appearance for the kids) was super caring, super nice and extremely attentive to us all. The manager, the hostess, the servers, folks behind the counter, the door greeter…everyone had the best attitude and gave us such exceptional customer service!

If that were not enough, we also had a great pizza meal, (served piping hot), we were entertained with a special birthday show, we had a fantastic arcade of fun games and fun activities for all ages to enjoy ourselves at, the kids got all kinds of extra bonuses from goodies they could get from the tickets they won at the arcade to birthday goodies from Chuck E. Cheese.  It was a safe, and clean, family fun experience our family will never forget.

I can’t tell you how so very pleased I was to finally receive the kind of customer service and value I believe all customers deserve when transacting with a business.

What kind of impact do you think this level of service and experience has had on me? Well, for starters, I’m sharing it with you! I also intend to recommend Chuck E. Cheese to everyone I know, all my family and friends and I am going to personally be a Chuck E. Cheese fan for the first time in my life!

Now that is the kind of impact you want to leave on your customers so they will in turn be so excited and pleased with the experience of doing business with you they become your sales force, your evangelists.  I hope corporate Chuck E. Cheese (CEC Entertainment, Inc. is headquartered in Irving, Texas) are members of the social networking sphere and join in the conversations about them. If you are, and it would do you well if you are listening to the customer…it’s a no brainer great customer experiences starts with great leadership and culture. The folks at Chuck E. Cheese in Franklin, Tennessee (General Manger Telisha Biles, managers Michelle and John and our wonderful host Emma and all the others there) get that.

As a result, we got the fruit of their commitment to the customer. I hope corporate  Chuck E. Cheese is smart to honor them for the job well done. Give them a raise too will ya?

P.S. Could not find Chuck E. Cheese on Twitter even though there is plenty of conversation going on about them. Not surprising though. Many companies are just missing the boat when it comes to embracing social media. Too bad.

]]> http://www.strategicbusinessdesigner.com/2009/07/what-chuck-e-cheese-can-teach-us-about-customer-experiences/feed/ 4 http://www.strategicbusinessdesigner.com/2009/05/unfollowdiddy-nobody-is-exempt-in-todays-social-marketplace/ http://www.strategicbusinessdesigner.com/2009/05/unfollowdiddy-nobody-is-exempt-in-todays-social-marketplace/#comments Wed, 27 May 2009 15:09:55 +0000 Hazel http://www.strategicbusinessdesigner.com/?p=340 Fired up my Twitter this morning and checked what the hot topics of the day were and my goodness…#unfollowdiddy was really buzzing!

So I decided to check out what was going on and lo and behold, many fellow tweets were voicing their not so nice things about P Diddy (Sean “Diddy” Combs).

See for yourself…

#unfollowdiddy is trending so I read his tweets. He’s less of a jerk than I expected, but arrogant as he**. Twitters taking him down a peg.

#unfollowdiddy FOLLOW ME FOR A FREE #unfollowdiddy T SHIRT -ONE WINNER EVERY HOUR SM L XL

Good

…

Fired up my Twitter this morning and checked what the hot topics of the day were and my goodness…#unfollowdiddy was really buzzing!

So I decided to check out what was going on and lo and behold, many fellow tweets were voicing their not so nice things about P Diddy (Sean “Diddy” Combs).

See for yourself…

#unfollowdiddy is trending so I read his tweets. He’s less of a jerk than I expected, but arrogant as he**. Twitters taking him down a peg.

#unfollowdiddy FOLLOW ME FOR A FREE #unfollowdiddy T SHIRT -ONE WINNER EVERY HOUR SM L XL

Good Morning twit fam!! I see the movement #unfollowdiddy is still going strong!

I think I will #unfollowdiddy even though I never followed him because it seems to be the cool thing to do today.

@iamdiddy if you love your followers so much, why not follow them back? #unfollowdiddy {so…why not?}

#unfollowdiddy because he’s a loser!

#unfollowdiddy It’s not because he hit 1 million. It’s how he did it. He kept screaming at people to RT. It was unnatural.

WOW! He is getting slammed by ‘the people’!! This is just a very small sampling of what is on the mind of the fans.

This whole #unfollowdiddy campaign is freaking hilarious. I unfollowed him a long time ago because he was so annoying.

I think they hurt Diddy’s feelings…he’s taken the #unfollowdiddy thing personally…LOL

What did he do to receive so much wrath?

That’s not the focus of my sharing today but I can tell you it had to do with folks perceiving he has double standards.

The point I am wanting to make in bringing this to your attention is not to spread gossip but to AGAIN backup up my position with real live facts…your brand is in the hands of the people.

And as you can see…it doesn’t matter WHO you are. If you are a super star or a politician, a local restaurant, a freelancer, or whatever. In minutes, you can be swept up in a fury of good or bad PR (People Release) and it can have huge repercussions (both good or bad).

What can you do to try and make sure what happened to P Diddy (Sean “Diddy” Combs) today does not happen to you?

Here are just a few proactive things to help ensure you don’t get on the bad list.

Be Real! People are fed up with lip service and falseness. Don’t be fake! Old fashioned things like character, honor and integrity will take you a long way in today’s marketplace both online and off (imagine that, this is back in style!).

Care about People! Don’t get full of yourself. Pay attention to what you do and how you treat people online and off. Don’t treat some better than others because they have more stature. You never know who you are dealing with and that can come back and bite you someday. Someone is always watching and talking about you and your business or brand. You cant fake care!

Don’t be Just a Taker! In today’s community minded economy, being a genuine giver is an expected and appreciated quality. What can you do to help others better their lives?

Take Your Tribe Serious! If you are in the position to have a following no matter how large or small, see that as a privilege, not a right. If you have such a following it is your responsibility to learn all you can on how to be the best you can for them and how to nurture your tribe. Here’s something I don’t see much of… help someone you don’t know move up a notch in their business. Like Gary Vaynerchuck says (paraphrased)…Social Equity is as valuable to anyone in business as Financial Equity. This is Tribenomics for sure.

If you are not in tune with how social community and social media works and how to best position your business and brand…get a professional to help you get positioned for this right now! Because here’s the thing…with or without you, the people rule!

P.S. If you need some advice or referral for help on this please feel free to contact me at hn @ strategicbusinessdesigner.com

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Apparently the marketing gurus in this company (and most other corporations for that matter) have not taken into consideration every move they make…we are watching them…and Twittering!

All over the country people were Twittering about their unhappy experience in “real-time“.  This is the power of the Social Network folks!

It’s for certain, many folks on were not happy campers. Just look at some of the comments I saw coming across Twitter…

one dollar flip flop day at old navy : hate hate hate flip flops : hate hate hate old navy : hate everyone buying flip flops right now

I just hope that Old Navy took names of everyone who CAMPED OUT for flip flops, in the interests of future gene pool cleansing

Da%$#^…old navy is out of $1 flip flops…i should have known.

In Old Navy people are fighting over the flip flops.I’m not even joking.

No more flip flops at old navy. Like 0 pairs left. People are intense.

Old navy was a bunch of B.S.

OLD Navy will remember the next time they have a $1.00. They had to close the store!

Craziness at Old Navy, all for cheap plastic shoes! So not worth it!

Will Old Navy try to do damage repair? That remains to be seen. What I do know is this should be a lesson for all of us in business but especially for you big guys.

No longer are you in control of your brand. The people are! Anyone in business not recognizing this must have checked out awhile back.

But here the thing, it’s not enough to just recognize this. You better be proactive and THINK through your marketing, services, products, advertising, etc.

Just sitting around the table dreaming up promotions and such is very dangerous in this new era. Heck, I’m still upset with KFC when they would not take my coupon I downloaded from the Oprah offer. That turned into a PR nightmare for them even if they don’t know it.

What matters is what the customer thinks…PERIOD!