Your employees as a terrific marketing asset

I really enjoy doing business with companies whose employees are friendly and who treat me with respect. Isn't it different than those companies whose people who go through the motions, treating you like you're intruding on their life, counting the hours till quitting time?

Late last year I travelled to Lapland, in northern Finland to experience what it was like above the Arctic Circle in wintertime (fascinating!). On the first leg of the return trip, we traveled via Finnair from Ivalo to Helsinki. As we climbed up the stairs, I composed an awesome photo in my mind of the plane's cockpit with the terminal in the background. I thought it would be a great way to show what midday looks like in a place where the sun doesn't rise in mid-winter.

I quickly got my iPhone out for a snap and at that moment the Captain turned and saw me.

Finnair's friendly pilots

What could the Captain have done? Well, he could have made a signal indicating "no photos". He could have pretended to not see me and turned away. Or he could have simply waved hello.

But this Captain took a moment to open the cockpit window and flash a thumbs up and smile. Fortunately, I got the shot, which I tweaked with Instagram. When I tweeted it, @Finnair social media people responded in real-time. Perfect.

Employees as a marketing asset

Most pilots do what the handbook tells them to and nothing more. They say: "Your business is important to us" over the loudspeaker at the moment prescribed and that's it.

It's not just pilots of course. In all businesses, many employees just don't care.

I think that a culture of caring comes from the top. It starts with how the CEO treats employees and customers. It comes from how people are hired, what skills are valued and how people are promoted.

No matter how such a culture develops, it is a terrific marketing asset.

Comments

[David Weiner]

David -

I've flown Finnair no less than 10 times and have never once had a bad experience. Given that sample size and my own experiences with other airlines, this fact is even more staggering. Glad you had a similar experience and I hope you enjoyed Lapland. I'll get up there some day...

DW

[Jorge Conceição]

David your conclusion says everything! If the staff has got “that” behavior that’s because all the reasons you’ve mentioned in your article! Examples come from Top people! I work with “people” (staff, mainly sales people from other companies) and our claim is “right behavior-right results”! Wonder why? Excellent post (once again!)!

[David Meerman Scott]

David - I've only flown them once. Glad to hear that my experience was not a one-off.

Jorge - Yes, I do think that leading by example works. Thanks for jumping in.

[Contrariansmind]

Great post David and a good reminder for those at the top of any organization or any parent.

A leader leads by example not by Force. ~Sun Tzu.

[Rj_c]

That is an awesome picture every small element fell in place just as all the elements to Finnair customer's service!

I also try to focus on supporting companies that treat me well!

[Colin Warwick]

SAS is very good too. In fact any airline that isn't United, American, or Delta is quite good :-)

BTW, doesn't it creep you out that pilots can open their windows? Why is that? It seems to introduce a failure mode without any obvious benefit...

[David Meerman Scott]

Colin when a plane is in the air the pressure differential between inside & outside means the window (& doors) cannot be opened, so no, I don't have any issues with it.

[Colin Warwick]

At the risk of turning your marketing blog into an aircraft safety blog ( :-) )... Understood about the pressure... My concern was what happens if the pilot doesn't close it properly on the ground... I googled around and it seems 1) there is a warning to prevent this 2) the reason for the feature isn't just frivolous (so the pilot can wave at people). It has a serious purpose: if the plane ditches in water the pilot has to open the window to equalize the pressure so the doors can be opened... maybe I should have googled this *before* posting my comment... sorry for the spam...

[David Meerman Scott]

Colin - I didn't know any of that. Thanks for this. I fly a lot.

[Steve Johnson]

I too love great customer service. No matter how we advertise and promote ourselves, your "brand" results from real interactions with real people. And it's not that employees don't care; it's that employees are forbidden to care. There are rules and standards and scripts they must follow; being spontaneous offends one annoying customer and a new corporate guideline is introduced; fear of being off message forces everyone to be stale and saccharin and lifeless.

I'd wish for each president to say this mantra every day: Customers come second; employees come first. If you put employees first, they'll take care of your customers.

[David Meerman Scott]

Well said Steve!! Many thanks for taking the time. I've not heard that mantra before but it totally makes sense.

[Nestor Volakis]

I agree with Steve as well. You need to let people in your company express themselves. When employees are happy within their work environment they will tend to keep it that way and that will reflect on their actions and customer service.
Up to this day, I have never met a happy employee ready to "do harm" on his business. Yet, I have witnessed stressed and unhappy employees "transmitting" their displeasure to the customers they served through their actions.