I have now reached beautiful Hoi An in central Vietnam.
I got there today from Tam Ky riding through the off track 40 km Thanh Nien road , with the Chinese sea to my right and rice fields to my left, so beautiful! I then boarded a small boat to cross the Thu Bon river. The journey was sporty due to the road and wind conditions. There is another typhoon on the way for tonight, but not to worry, this time I am fully prepared. I am staying at the best hotel Hoi An as to offer - Anantara - which feels very safe: they insisted no guest are to stay on the third floor today in case the typhoon would blow off the roof. And as I am writing this, they are gluing all windows with tape.
I got there today from Tam Ky riding through the off track 40 km Thanh Nien road , with the Chinese sea to my right and rice fields to my left, so beautiful! I then boarded a small boat to cross the Thu Bon river. The journey was sporty due to the road and wind conditions. There is another typhoon on the way for tonight, but not to worry, this time I am fully prepared. I am staying at the best hotel Hoi An as to offer - Anantara - which feels very safe: they insisted no guest are to stay on the third floor today in case the typhoon would blow off the roof. And as I am writing this, they are gluing all windows with tape.
Anyway back to the subject of this post....
The Ultimate Response*
While cycling, I was reflecting over how I adapted my communication over the past week to try and fit in: I smile. I smile a lot.
The Ultimate Response*
While cycling, I was reflecting over how I adapted my communication over the past week to try and fit in: I smile. I smile a lot.
Not being able to communicate in the same language can be a real experiential challenge. There is the spoken language but also the tone of voice, the body language and the unspoken cultural rules.
Gender, age and type of communities count too.
Several times a day, some people scare me off. Several times a day, I scare some of them off. We look different...
In these situations a smile always seems to be the ultimate response to reestablish a positive energy.
It's a safe way to start an interaction or to turn it around if it started on the wrong foot. It's a little bit like waving a white flag.
This holds also a lot of truth in my profession, call it "customer management" to be broad enough.
Generally, to deliver a positive experience, a brand's goal shall be to communicate in a way that such communication brings a smile to consumers' face. If it does, then it succeeded establishing a rapport and the smiling consumers are more likely to engage with the next call to action.
But making people smile is not necessary an easy task.
For a start brands need to engage with a smile first. As an example, many call centers representatives have a mirror on their desk which allows for self awareness of their emotions when picking up a call. A lot of smiling in the mirror leads to excellent customer satisfaction performance.
But brands need to engage with a smile that is also genuine. Kind and happy employees - in sales, marketing and customer services - deliver genuine smiles. This is why all the literature on the subject of customer loyalty management insist companies must drive employee satisfaction to enable customer centricity in their organization.
I find sharing a smile is one of the most universal communication language there is. It works in all cultures, genders or age groups. It is the ultimate response brands shall be looking for in their customer relationship management. Chances are, if a brand makes people smile, it will have a high Net Promoter Score too.
So how about this next piece of communication you are planning, will it make consumers smile?
Gender, age and type of communities count too.
Several times a day, some people scare me off. Several times a day, I scare some of them off. We look different...
In these situations a smile always seems to be the ultimate response to reestablish a positive energy.
It's a safe way to start an interaction or to turn it around if it started on the wrong foot. It's a little bit like waving a white flag.
This holds also a lot of truth in my profession, call it "customer management" to be broad enough.
Generally, to deliver a positive experience, a brand's goal shall be to communicate in a way that such communication brings a smile to consumers' face. If it does, then it succeeded establishing a rapport and the smiling consumers are more likely to engage with the next call to action.
But making people smile is not necessary an easy task.
For a start brands need to engage with a smile first. As an example, many call centers representatives have a mirror on their desk which allows for self awareness of their emotions when picking up a call. A lot of smiling in the mirror leads to excellent customer satisfaction performance.
But brands need to engage with a smile that is also genuine. Kind and happy employees - in sales, marketing and customer services - deliver genuine smiles. This is why all the literature on the subject of customer loyalty management insist companies must drive employee satisfaction to enable customer centricity in their organization.
I find sharing a smile is one of the most universal communication language there is. It works in all cultures, genders or age groups. It is the ultimate response brands shall be looking for in their customer relationship management. Chances are, if a brand makes people smile, it will have a high Net Promoter Score too.
So how about this next piece of communication you are planning, will it make consumers smile?
*With the title "The Ultimate Response", I am making a reference to the book by Fred Reicheild, "the Ultimate Question" in which he introduces the NPS score, presented as the best and ultimate measure of Customer Loyalty
Pictures from the last few days: Rice fields, Vietnamese Trail, Beach near Dai Lanh
Pictures from the last few days: Rice fields, Vietnamese Trail, Beach near Dai Lanh
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