Microsoft

Likes: Good Sense of Humour

Picture yourself at a party. You’re talking to a member of the opposite sex; they look great and appear to be quite interesting.  In the middle of conversation they accidently use the word ‘suppository’ instead of ‘depository’ (imagine that!) You laugh, understandably. They duly acknowledge the mistake was made, and ensure they will do all they can to ensure the rest of the conversation will be free of errors. Stunned by the sterile response, you take an awkward sip of your drink and hope to be bailed out as soon as possible. From the other side of the party, you hear chuckles from a conversation you’d much rather be part of.

Now, not all business-client relationships can be represented in the above analogy. But some can. Too often many businesses will avoid showing a sense of humour out of fear of appearing ‘unprofessional’ when in reality it can be taken as a profound display of respect for your customer.

People are savvy. They know (and are likely weary of) ‘corporate’ and ‘marketing’ speak. Addressing them in this tone may make them feel like they’re being talked down to. But engage with your customers on their level, and you’re not only checkmating their cynicism and respecting their intelligence, you’re also demonstrating you understand them.

Famous news-parody publication The Onion boasts an enviable readership demographic – 18 to 44, 26% with an income over 100k and 35% with an advanced degree. This hip parody paper has started producing ads.  Only these ads feature The Onion’s biting satirical approach. So what brave company would pay to be publicly mocked by the world’s most renowned satirists?

You might have heard of them – a company called Microsoft. Microsoft’s Internet Explorer was famous for being terrible. If you weren’t aware of that and the armies of keyboard warriors that perpetuated this opinion, let me get you up to speed with this ad for the latest version of Internet Explorer. With almost 3 million views at the time of writing this and an overwhelmingly positive response – this just shows how beneficial being self-deprecating can be.

This approach isn’t limited to mass-advertising. It can be applied to day-to-day transactions.  Displaying a sense of humour demonstrates intelligence and confidence – give your customers the credit they deserve and you might be surprised by what it does for your brand.

– Jakub

Constructing From Criticism

This year I was lucky enough to be treated to dinner at one of Australia’s best restaurants. And while it wasn’t my first visit, it was the best. Surprisingly, what elevated the experience above others wasn’t the quality of the food, beverages or service. It was the fact that the restaurant team has acknowledge the single criticism that has been leveled at them in the past, and have adjusted accordingly.

Let’s rewind the clock back to my first visit. While the food, matched wines and service blew me away, the dining room was plain: with the walls, floor and ceiling all covered in shades of grey. In stark contrast to the menu, it was boring. I looked through a few reviews and noticed the same criticism popping up time and time again: “unbelievable dining, boring room”.

UnHappyCustomersNow snap back to my most recent visit. What was once a dull room has been subdivided into multiple smaller chambers using both walls and natural wood dividers, giving rooms more intimacy and warmth. Tasteful art has added colour, and even the plates on which dishes are served have been revamped to add more personality, variety and even quirky optical illusions that work with the food. I daresay it’s the only truly perfect dining experience of my life, and it’s the result of constructing from criticism.

In the Messages On Hold copywriting department, we make it easy for clients to give us the good, bad and ugly of the scripts we’ve written. It can be done by email, phone or even through social media. Plus, at the bottom of every script there’s a clear feedback form to complete, to give us a customer’s view of our work in a nutshell.

Getting a script written right the first time is a priority, much like giving a diner the perfect meal at a restaurant. We’ll go through a copy brief in depth over the phone, covering every possible component of the scripting, and even voices & music. But unlike death and taxes, a perfect script is not a certainty. What is certain is that we’ll move heaven and Earth to acknowledge any customer feedback on the scripts we write, and will do everything possible to ensure the product that ends up on a customer’s phone system is exactly what they were looking for.

“Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.”

Next time your business receives feedback, remember the above quote from Bill Gates, then go forth and improve your service!

– Magnus