Don't Play Games With the Devil If You Don't Know the Details
We all know a phrase: “The devil is in the details.” But how to find the details and do we apply this wisdom to our everyday work routine? I thought about this when I was recently talking to a friend, who is an expert in retail and he was telling me about an article covering Tesla retail store. He said that a title sounded very interesting, but when he went through the details it was nothing like what they promised in the title. Then I thought it’s all about details and boring routine behind.
I meet a lot of people who start saying without understanding the process: “Everything is wrong, I can do that and this better!” When they start doing things they realize, ah yes, those small, almost invisible details actually mattered.
It used to happen to me and it would take effort to force myself to go through the “kitchen”, not directly to the “front door” of the project. Sometimes I would think, ah, what happens if I don’t change a word or if I send the same email to different people? Exactly, nothing really happens as the best-case scenario.
The same thing is true when it comes to PR and communication, it’s all about small details and things that are not visible from outside.
As I mentioned in my previous post, one of the goals of PR is to acquire new users. The common scenario is that people work hard in the beginning and then after launching a project they think it will work the same way as it did in the beginning. We launch a new website, acquire new users, increase website traffic, launch social media channels, and etc. Is that it? Should we just keep bringing new users and repeating the same cycle? Sure, we should. But working with existing users is more important after certain point than bringing new ones.
This is where community relations skills come in. Standard set of community relations includes newsletters, social media, answering questions, monitoring informational field around, special engagement with consistent users. Appreciating existing users is a must. Keep in mind that loyalty is hard to build but very easy to destroy. Loyalty doesn’t mean spamming users by sending newsletters and e-commerce messages as soon as we have a lack of orders etcetera. Loyalty means understanding target users and respecting their personal space.
Another lesson I learned is respecting the aesthetical part of communication, which includes email standards, refreshing design from time to time, experimenting with layout and understanding what your users click and like most. Visual comes first and you will never have a chance to make a second impression.
In big companies this all is covered by different departments, in startups by 1-2 people, in a small blog or website by one person. It can be big or small but all above mentioned parts of communication have to be covered and thought through. E.g. customer support used to be separate from PR, but now when we deal with internet it’s important to either go together or communicate on a consistent base. It’s beneficial for both sides: for Customer Support to stay on the top of updates and in a correct and timely manner answer customer inquires; for PR to hear what customer think, say, want and how they react. I noticed such a difference between doing PR five years ago and now. I am able to see reaction and feedback right away and make changes on the go; I can change my press release by changing an emphasis after the first pitch. It just saves so much time and helps avoid so many mistakes and save money for the company.
Another devil is that we often forget outside information flow or “gossips” about “us”. Go and check what people say – just by googling or setting up google alerts. Sounds very obvious and easy. It’s a must to monitor what former or existing users say through other communication channels every day. A few complaints on social media can cost a company almost a year of work, especially if it’s a new product. But at the same time it doesn’t mean that you need to be always sorry if there is a request or complaint. Again check the core of the problem; understand all details. If you see that there is a problem, analyze it and be open. Only honesty and consistent communications will keep customers.
How often do we forget about our promises or something that has been asked and never followed up? Guilty, I sometimes do this. Please, follow your promises. Friends will understand and forgive your excuses, but not customers. Users will never come back if they wait long for what they have been promised.
If these parts are not set, all PR efforts will work like a pipe, when users come to the website and almost the same amount of them leave. It should work like a funnel, when you lose as few community members as you can.
There is nothing bad for a company as a disappointed person after an excitement. Usually when people experience such drastic emotions as being excited about something and suddenly disappointed by a very small detail they never want to hear about that experience again. It’s all about associations and details.
