I recently saw a video from a management guru Adizes about Mutual respect and Mutual Trust, and how “external marketing” can happen only if you have any energy left after “internal marketing”.. i believe the idea can be extended to Brands.. what are Brands..
My last publication on confusion lead me to think about what i said about Mutual Trust & Mutual Respect. That is perhaps the basis of team building anyway. You couldn’t work with anyone without these two basic values. You need to trust and respect your office assistant as much as you need to trust and respect your boss.
Any environment that breeds Trust and Respect amongst employees would be a fulfilling/ satisfying place to work in. I believe as humans earning respect and trust is more important than earning money. Try the combinations in any other way..imagine a person earning a lot of money, but is not trusted by his people, (that means he will not be given responsibilities that would challenge his capability) and is not respected by his people..( that means people will talk ill of him to every one else)..this person is bound to get tons of internal problems..depression, indigestion, he is likely to smoke, drink and be alone…. and he will not have much to show for his performance anyway.
Now imagine a company that doesnt have Trust and Respect of its consumers or employees.. (one doesnt exist if other is missing)…A company that makes defective things, advertises with false messages, doesnt service, charges high…cheats its consumer..is disrespecting its consumer. It is highly unlikely that a customer will come again or recommend the product of service.
It is the same with the products or services themselves. products need to be made, distributed, priced, recycled with a sense of respect to the consumer. Any product that tries shortcut will be called a bad product or service.
A consumer needs to Trust the product/ service to do what it is meant to do, he needs to trust that if for some reason it doesnt perform, he can take the product back and get a replacement. Sometime consumers trust their lives to various services, hospitals, airlines, pharma products. Infact governments come in and create standards so that consumers feel safe. and they can trust based on these certifications.
A product becomes a brand only and only if that trust forms between the product and the consumer. A company can only get trust if it respects the consumer. products respecting consumers, their loved ones, their environments become like a family.
The best examples of Brands would be from companies that respect customers, think about them and make their lives easier. They are transparent in their costing, practices, availability, distribution, services and in their CSR.
Customers would usually trust these companies enough to become their ambassadors. Insisting to their friends and family to enjoy the respect of these companies.
It is simple, but not a easy value system to adapt. put this frame on to banking, online retail, automobile..and even on your local politician..you will know.
