An emotional and mental real estate is etched into the hearts and minds of customers by a company's brand. Products or services are often charged 100% more because of a company that lives up to it's brand promises. These company's customers and employees are more loyal because they are satisfied with the products or services. However, many of us have experienced poor customer service that is far from the promise of that brand. Often times we have known more about the product or services offered by a company than they themselves. Occasionally we may have found ourselves behind the counter, dishing out the poor customer service.

Service for products vary from product to product as customer demands and expected measurement of delivery may vary too. Service delivery intensive businesses have more work to do. Staff have the option of either providing service that negates the brand or that supports the brand. There are occasions where one staff member may fulfill the service delivery to a customer, just to have another staff member drop the ball. These kinds of businesses have to make sure that there is consistency with regards to the level of service delivery at every point during the customer experience. Unfortunately staff cannot deliver what they don't understand or know. The majority of staff members receive inadequate training and no real brand orientation. They are not given enough knowledge to deliver on the brand's promise.

But, staff can't deliver what they don't know or understand. The question is how many people know what a mission and vision statement is all about and how many people know that mission statements are the underlining promise of a brand. The need for staff to be trained on customer service delivery, brand awareness, Office etiquette and office protocols can not be overemphasized. Studies reveal that an average of 56% of employees who interface with customers lack their own management's support to deliver their brand effectively. Not unlikely, as 50% of those managers don't understand the positioning of the brand themselves.

Big corporations in the world have survived the harsh economic times simply because of consistent customer service. Hence organizations look at employing individuals with such skills to add value to their organizations. You most always receive excellent service at both ends of the counter. It's important to note here that such successful companies spend more on employee training than on marketing. It is critical that we learn to link staff behavior with our own brands vision, mission, policies and customer service. We must teach everyone on our team from the CEO to the janitor, what our brand means and how that meaning determines the distinct level of service we must deliver to support the brand. It's important that our team deliver that full brand value on a consistent basis day in and day out.

Essentially there are two things going on internally that cause disparity between what a firm's management says its brand will do and what it actually does in terms of customer service delivery. First, statistics show that most often senior management has not truly taken the time needed to develop the firms brand fabric. Brand fabric refers to the core vision, mission, values and personality of the firm. They are those essential elements that must show up in everything the firm does and includes how a customer is treated at every touch point. Without this knowledge, the firms' management team can't deliver a foundational understanding of the brand to staff members.

Recently, I had some time back, was at UCO where for every day glitch or downtime experienced during training that adds up to a week, the online training college promises a free course training for under privileged delegates from the townships, indirectly giving back to society through such schemes. A mail goes out to the delegate with reason for complain and on what has been done to put the issue right. What an interesting new way to promise great customer service! I commented on the new sign to the gal at the register. Studies reveal that at least 40% of marketing is wasted on unmotivated or uninformed staff members. Again, staff can't deliver what they don't know.

Essentially there are two things going on internally that cause disparity between what a firm's management says its brand will do and what it actually does in terms of customer service delivery. Team members need to be reading from same page of the playbook to deliver consistent brand value. In next month's issue of Deep Insights, we will further outline brand fabric and introduce a plan to get your own brand fabric into the hands of who can drive service that supports your brands full value.