The Internal Experience Has to Come First!

John Vachalek - 4.8.2009 12:00 AM

Experience Marketing is the act of turning regular, ordinary business operations and events into something stimulating, engaging and immersing for the participant. Every interaction with a client, potential client or employee is an opportunity to create an experience! 

Branded, internal experiences are critical if you expect team members to provide great external experiences for your clients.

KKB, PC (http://www.kkb-cpa.com) is the region’s only Financial Consulting and CPA firm specializing in the Healthcare industry. 

As we worked with the principals of this firm to help define their brand, it was determined that the experience they really provide to their clients is, “Making Your Life More Enjoyable.”  An experience cannot focus on the products or services offered. An experience must focus on the emotional, bonding result of HOW you go about delivering a great product or service.  This, “HOW” is the experience.

Professional service firms typically focus on the skills of their team, their reputation and their ability to satisfy the needs of their clients.  But, to truly build a brand, you have to look beyond these basic requirements.  Every one of your clients expects you to have qualified people, do an excellent job for them, and provide a good level of customer service.  In today’s marketplace, this is a given. What moves great companies to the next level, is the experience associated with the delivery of these services.

Experience Marketing is action-based marketing.  It is not just words or a memo that gets sent to everyone letting them know what to do.  An experience creates an emotional message through the stimulation of as many senses as possible. This is what makes it memorable and far more powerful. 

If a firm expects its team members to create better client experiences, they have to allow their team members to experience something different themselves.  The environment has to change, the culture has to shift and everyone has to fully understand how it feels to have someone be “Making Your Life More Enjoyable.”  A corporate culture reflects the behaviors of its leaders!

So, how is KKB, PC (http://www.kkb-cpa.com) conveying their brand experience to their team through experiences?

1. They held an internal, “Marketing Convergence Kickoff Meeting.” This event at their office featured fun invitations, a breakfast buffet and upbeat music. Their principals discussed the importance of this intentional experience with brief and fun presentations.
2. They reviewed all the programs that they already have in place that make the lives of their team members more enjoyable. Some of these include covered parking for everyone, dry cleaning pick up/delivery and social events.
3. They created an “Enjoyment Committee” to engage team members in the development of new ways to make the lives of their team members and clients more enjoyable on a regular basis.
4. Every team member filled out an “Enjoyment Profile” which outlines some of their likes, preferences and wishes.  These will be recorded and used to create unique and relevant experiences in the future.
5. Everyone was given personalized company mugs to use for their morning coffee. This mug will serve as a daily reminder for every team member that their goal is to make each one of their client’s lives more enjoyable on a daily basis.

There is a popular t-shirt that says, “The Beatings Will Continue Until Morale Improves!”  Sadly, this is how many companies still enforce their customer service guidelines.  This is the wrong approach!

If you expect your team to create wonderful experiences for your clients, you must show them how this feels by creating wonderful experiences for them.  These experiences must stimulate as many senses as possible, be created with intention, and they must be personalized, relevant and memorable. If you do this, over time you will see a true transformation take place. 

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