“Useful unsexy telephone”, Zappo’s CEO
“As unsexy and low-tech as it may sound, the telephone is one of the best branding devices out there”. This is one of the highlights of a recent article in Harvard Business Review by Zappo’s CEO (Tony Hsieh). [Zappo’s is the leader online shoe retailer acquired recently by Amazon.]
And it goes even further:
“(…) it’s strange that an internet company would be so focused on the telephone, when only about 5% of our sales happen by phone. But (…) our customers telephone us at least once at some point, and if we handle the call well, we have an opportunity to create an emotional impact and a lasting memory.”
This comment applies to best practices in networking too. In previous posts, I wrote about the benefits of a phone call and how email is a great working tool while the phone is a great NETworking tool.
This is what Hseih recommends to increase the retailer’s brand. Even if most of the process is done via another channel (online), the brand is built over the phone, while talking.
When you network, you nurture your contacts by sending them valuable information (email, post or other). However, the initial phone call will set the tone of your relationship and set the foundations for trust.
When one of the biggest Internet leaders recommends using the phone, you can only follow his advice!
Related links:
- “How I Did It: Zappos’s CEO on Going to Extremes for Customers”, Tony Hsieh, Harvard Business Review, July–August 2010, pp 41-45. www.hbr.org/2010/07/how-i-did-it-zapposs-ceo-on-going-to-extremes-for-customers/ar/1
- Previous posts in Networking & Business on the use of the telephone.
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