Track feelings, not revenue

Posted By: Indrajit Ghosh September 17, 2020

Remember the time when your brand saw the light of the day? Maybe you were there with your brand, with crossed fingers, hoping to create miracles, or probably you were not even born. But I can challenge that day was all about uncertainty.

With many changes over time, successes, let downs, but uncertainty has stayed. It is time to embrace it and accept that it is not a by-product of just a pandemic or crisis; anticipation is a constant. And uncertainty is the only thing your customers know for sure.

Uncertainty is not just with businesses; it is what distinguishes us from the almighty. You are not sure about life in general, are you? You cannot predict what happens next. You can hope. And that is what you can do when it comes to your business too. Sometimes, embracing reality is already planning. Everyone wants their brand to be on the upward curve, but it is okay to hit a plateau. It is okay if the curve goes downward. It is all okay till the time it is still on the graph!

While it is good to be assured, it is even better to share your stance. Let the customer know. it is all about allowing the customer to be a part of your journey. First, you build a relationship; then, you build trust. You get better from there.

A key towards building a relationship is to be 100% transparent. You can get there quickly by talking about what you are doing on a day-to-day basis. Inform all the activities you are a part of. From your initiatives to your struggles – lay it all down in the open. Let the customer perceive you as a brand that stands for experience rather than just tech and specs. Second, do not just talk – listen! Make your customers speak.

Let them share ideas, state problems, and even vent out and address them in a way that makes a difference to them. Even if you do not make a difference, you have at least put yourself in a position to do so. And it can be redeemed too.

Let us face it. Keeping your cool in the times of crisis, especially when you have been bombarded with a lot of questions and doubts, is going to be difficult. But this too shall pass. Here the mantra is to stay calm and be prepared. It is necessary to have a strong plan in place and stick to it. Tell the customers about your resolve and make it uniform across teams.

More importantly, respond to apprehensions, and respond timely. The customer needs to know what to expect, and that must be comforting. Delaying, it might dilute the effectiveness of your promise.

You have a plan in place, great. Your response time is immediate, excellent. But what you communicate needs to be relevant. You may have more significant issues in hand, but the customer cares about his unique issue the most, however small that might be! Changing the lens from macro to micro can be very beneficial for your brand.

Here is your checklist for effective communication:

Be accurate

Be compassionate

Be transparent

Be honest

Be you

Indrajit Ghosh is the Global Marketing Communication & Design Head at Rebel Foods. An alumnus of MIT Institute of Design, Pune, and Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta. Indrajit was the founder and CEO of OMG Digital, a full-fledged creative agency which was eventually acquired by a Marque network.

In the past, before coming on board with Rebel Foods, Indrajit was a founder of two successful ventures. Based out of Mumbai, Indrajit has key interests in travelling, painting, movies, and pop culture.