I bought a pair of soccer cleats for my ever growing 10yr old son from SoccerPro, an online retailer based in Missouri. The prices were fair and the site was easy to use but that's not what compelled me to write this. This company is full of personality and it is clear to me that they have made a decision to make every possible interaction surprisingly great.
I'm always grateful to get acknowledgement that my order was received and shipped, but check out this order confirmation excerpt:
Dann,
Your order #xxxxx , has been fully shipped. Shout out loud! Give someone a hug! Or, get back to work...your call. Either way, we don't judge.
This gear is important and you probably want an official-sounding shipping summary. Hold onto your mouse pad cause here comes the fancy stuff.
Shipment Details:
Your order is being shipped to:
Dann Ilicic
XXXXXX
XXXXXX
We absolutely love having you as a customer!
Talk Soon,
Sergio
How can you not love a company that has a Department of Surprise and Delight? I've already told everyone on my son's team about how great it is to deal with SoccerPro and I'll definitely be buying there again.
Sometimes clients think that better branding is the answer to their business problems, but let me say that branding is really about turning your truth (what's already real and great about you) into your competitive advantage. If your service or product sucks, then branding is the last place you should spend your money.
One of the greatest enjoyments I get out of the work we do for clients is to get their delivery aligned with their brand promise. It is the single biggest impact I think the branding process can have. Do you believe enough in your own brand promise to fully take on the risk of of the promise? Does your brand have a personality that comes through in every interaction? Are you hiring people that "are" that personality? Now, go deliver.
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Comments
You hit the nail on the head about the relationship between branding and delivery: branding is the promise of a future potential experience and delivery is making that experience happening.
A company's band - no matter how many millions are spent on it - becomes worthless when the real experience does not match the promise.
I also admire the SoccerPro company for rethinking typically boring processes and print pieces. Good on them for being able to put a smile one someone's face and finding a way to make a customer feel valued...every step along the way.
L