By George Anderson
In an interview published on the Fast Company website, Aaron Magness, director for brand marketing and business development at Zappos, offered five principles that he believes are key to his company's success:
- "Customer service is the new marketing." The consumer is in charge and the days of the retailer dictating the terms of the relationship with the customer are over.
- You need to "communicate with your customers, don't market to them." Shoppers are interested in a two-way dialogue that helps them get what they want. Getting what they want creates loyalty, which doesn't happen by pushing messages out to them.
- It is not important to be perceived as being interesting. Instead, companies need to demonstrate interest in what customers think. "A lot of companies try to launch a really creative campaign, but lack the follow up to the brand promise," Mr. Magness told Fast Company. "Your campaign should highlight what your brand promise is, not try to invent one."
- You need to "wow" at all personal interactions, be they with customers, employees or vendors. "Personal relationships and interactions drive everything. You need to capitalize on them," he said.
- Company culture is key to success. "Hire great people, treat them like adults and let them do great work. The rest should come naturally on its own," Mr. Magness told Fast Company.
Discussion Question: What is your reaction to Aaron Magness' five marketing principles? Is there one in particular that you would bank on?