Comments on: Personal Brands have a direct effect on corporate image

By: Piotr J

Piotr J — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 23:32:05 +0000

How damn annoying is it when people do that. I ran into the same problem with my recent car purchase. I researched used cars and I knew I wanted to have a Dodge Intrepid. When I walked into the dealership, I told him exactly the car that I wanted, which was standing close to the entrance in the inventory. The guy had to walk me across the parking lot, asking me whether I wanted this Accord for 3 grand more, or this Civic. No. I researched it. I want it.

When I took it out for a test drive it was the same thing. I was literally going to say “Stop badgering me because I know exactly what I want, and nothing you say will change my mind.” I ended up not buying the car, because after 1.5 hours of that experience, and after sitting down to sign the papers, he had discovered that the car was sold 2 days ago. You should guess what I told the customer service reps who would call me to ask about my car purchasing experience….

Every person is an ambassador for the corporation they work with, for the clubs/organizations they represent, and for their family. This could not be more true!

Best buy definitely has something to work for. Maybe if they got their customer service to the level of Singapore Airlines (one of my favorite brands), they would understand that pleasurable experiences convert not only into repeat sales ($$$) but positive word of mouth (even more $$$).

By: onthemarkwriting

onthemarkwriting — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 13:30:10 +0000

Dan Schawbel has a phenomenal blog on the subject of personal branding, and you can visit it yourself by clicking the link.

-Link to New York October Issue Newsletter

By: Whisper | Carnival of Trust - October 2007

Whisper | Carnival of Trust - October 2007 — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 12:18:40 +0000

[...] Personal Brands have a direct effect on corporate image [...]

By: Nick

Nick — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 00:39:29 +0000

I think they do this because the markup on the big ticket items are so low, but on the accessories they are high. Most electronics come with a manufacturer’s warranty. What they sell at places like BB are extended warranty, which go into effect after the manufacturer’s warranty.

I think the problem with most retail organizations is that do not see enough value in having personable people on their front lines. The ones that are could be making more money doing something else. Retailers are weighing the damage caused by bad customer service against the benefits of selling high margin accessories. Since it is a sales culture without a long term sales strategy (and the employees are probably not going to be there long term), pushing accessories and extended warranties wins. You think BB with their progressive Results Oriented Work Environment for their corporate employees, they might be more progressive about hiring the right salespeople in the stores.

By: shwibbs

shwibbs — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 23:04:27 +0000

A lot can be learned from mistakes such as the one I blogged about above. The idea here is to view them as opportunities for improvement.

Remember without customers there cannot be corporate brands, thus there cannot be personal brands working there!

By: Becky Carroll

Becky Carroll — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 23:01:42 +0000

Dan, this post does a great job of showing how important customer service is to branding. Each customer interaction leaves a brand impression. In your case, it has not been good for Best Buy!

Employee attitudes can indeed make it or break it. Nice post!

By: The Communications Factors: What You Say Can Affect Your Customers! « COMMUNICATIONS FACTORS

Thu, 27 Sep 2007 17:54:24 +0000

[...] Factors: What You Say Can Affect Your Customers! September 27th, 2007 As I read in Dan Schawbel’s blog about branding, I was reminded that what you say, either verbally or non-verbally, can really [...]

By: Sarah Wurrey

Sarah Wurrey — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 14:12:17 +0000

I am currently in possession of a warranty pushed on my by the checkout girl at BestBuy for my $99 iHome clock radio. Entirely, stupidly unnecessary, but I got pressured into it!

Reminds me of when I worked at Lady Foot Locker in high school and was trained to try and force every customer buying running shoes to also buy three pairs of special socks and some gel inserts as well. I always felt so shady…like, if the customer wants or needs socks, they’ll say so, right?

Great post!

By: Katie

Katie — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 13:46:56 +0000

I hate the warranty push too, as well as the general disregard most Best Buy employees show towards women buyers. I also go into Best Buy with knowledge about the products I want to buy, and then face a struggle even getting the attention of employees. It’s maddening.

On thing though, if you’re one of those people who use their electronics in many places, the warranty is worth it. Four years ago, I purchased a warranty for a laptop–and I’m currently on my 2nd warranty-funded replacement. Unusual, yes, but worth it for me.