Increasing Employee & Client Engagement

Does Size Matter… It is one of the biggest errors someone can make.  Bigger is not always better.  That goes against everything in American thinking.  We want big.  Big cars, big houses, big portions, big diamonds, big, big, big.  It is the American way.  However, in this arena, I feel it is important to go against our natural urges.  Because our ego will want everyone to read, hear or watch what we have to say.  This will not make it more successful though.  In my opinion, I would rather have a thousand raving fans than ten thousand luke warm admirers.  An admirer may respect you, but not necessary loyal.  The first sign something perceived better comes along… they are gone.  It could be lower price, a different or new attribute or something more trivial.  So size is very subjective to me.

An example of this could be a website.  Number of visits and click through rates have always been key measures.  They really don’t tell you anything.  It doesn’t tell you if the attitude of the user was happy or not.  If they like the brand or why they were there.  Were they engaged?  Were they researching or participating?  Did they convert to a customer or lead?  So determining the most important part still needs work… User Attitude & Behavior.  A lot of drilling down needs to take place.  Quality is more important than quantity.

Do Not Bite More Than You Can Chew… It is so easy to get swept up in the excitement that Social Media brings and builds. Social Media can be very daunting though.    Who wants to just dip a finger in and get a nibble.  Again the American way pokes its head out.  We want to be master of all.  We dive head first into every Social Media tool out there and become master of none.

Lets try taking small bites and grow organically.  Lets list out all the different Social Media tools.  Do research on each of them.  Then prioritize each tool, set goals and determine the order in which you want to take on and tackle.  We will discuss a few of the specific tools soon, but let me illustrate this point with an example.

I am a man of big ambitions.  My wife is always having to reign me back in.  This year, I decided I was going to tackle organizing the basement…  In my “Tim The Tool Man Taylor” (from show Home Improvement), I went to Home Depot and bought every known organizing piece available.  I had shelving systems, big clear containers with lids.  You get the picture.  Then I moved everything out of the basement and into the backyard.  It looked more like a grave yard for stuff.  Sanford & Sons theme song would of been playing at this funeral.

My wife came downstairs, and I wish you could of seen the look on her face.  It was priceless.  It was a look of disbelief, and SHOCK.  She looked over at me.  I was sitting in a chair, elbows on my knees and my hands pressed against my forehead.  She knew my heart was in the right place, but my stomach was bigger than my mouth…   She could tell I was overwhelmed and no clue how to start.  In a soft & gentle voice, and a shaking of her head… her advice was to just take it room by room and she would help me get started.  It turned into a team project.  We got the first room done.  We started getting momentum.  We picked up pace and speed… Clean & organized basement.

So when you feel overwhelmed.  Compartmentalize.  Create buckets.  Step by step.  Dont take the next rung until you completed the one before it.  Easier to fight a bunch of smaller battles than one big one.

What size is the perfect size?  How big or how much is to much?

Markets Are Communites… Your goal in Social Media is to create a community… a following.  Continually create remarkable & valuable content first.  People will hold that information dear and close.  Remember, all that is needed for the basis of community is common interest, connection to it and passion for it.

After a while, because of the common interest, the community will take over.  Info will go from Leader to Community and then spread horizontally.  So it is important to create tools for the community to be able to communicate with the community.   The Grateful Dead did this better than anyone I can think of.  The Dead Heads.

When Developing a Community:

• Determine the Reason People Are Gathering - Information Gathering, Networking etc.
• Again… Deliver Value and then Deliver More.
• Engage Them… Get People to Participate.  Empower Them.  Determine Ways For the Community to Share Thoughts, Information, Ideas and Insights.
• Get Permission to Opt Into Further Communication.  This Will Help People Remain Connected. -Newsletter etc.

Communities Are Conversations… Conversations are going on with or without you.  So join in.  Participate. Determine what the “bigger piece of pie”, that your company, product or service encompass.  The solution that keeps your target audience awake.  Then base all of your conversations around that.

Here a few things to keep in mind in developing those conversations.

• Understand what is driving the conversations?
• What influences the conversations?
• What is keeping your suspects, prospects and customers up at night?
• What is the mutually interesting connection taking place and common topic of interest shared.

Even More Important Is To Keep In Mind All the Conversations Going On Vertically, Horizontally & Diagonally…

• Management to Employee
• Management to Customer
• Employee to Employee
• Employee to Customer
• Employee to Supplier
• Customer to Customer
• Management to … ; Employee to …;  Customer to …  & on

Create conversations and a community and you can create a MOVEMENT…

How are you going to create a community???   How do you develop conversations that spread???

Hopefully, by now, you are at least challenging what your belief was before.  All this is the foundation for the strategies we will be talking about next month.  If I haven’t proved it yet. If my overwhelming passion about this still didn’t make you feel it.  If I have done a horrible job explaining and convincing you that engagement is the new promised land.   Then today my goal will be to give you the final nail. Then in my next post, I am bringing the hammer which will nail it down for you.   I feel it is my job to shout to the world and to push and challenge you  to exploring further how you can engage your clients & employees and get greater results.

Feel free to add your comments at the bottom of this article on what’s worked for you. It’s a great way to make a good impression and meet new contacts.

Everything Pointed Me Back To Engagement…

I have done hundreds and hundreds of hours of research (my wife will try to make you believe it is thousands).  I have read, studied and spoke to some great pioneers in fields of branding, thought leadership, social media, permission marketing, inbound marketing and “new marketing”.    No matter who I was talking to or reading…Everything just brought me back to engagement.  WHY???  Because that is the ULTIMATE GOAL and END RESULT of all of the fields I mentioned.  They are all tactics or ways to engage your audience.  After all of my research, it came down to these basic fundamentals. (click on link below for previous post)

1.  Caring & Sharing

2.  Involvement

3.  Understanding

4.  Connection

5.  Appreciation

6.  Performance

7. Genuine, Authentic & Transparent

8. Communication, Collaboration & Actively Listening

9. Measurement & Feedback

Hopefully you see how important the foundation for engagement is for the survival of your company in the years to come.  More importantly is you see the risks of ignoring it, putting it on the backburner or just not putting the adequate resources to it are just too high.

Tell me your thoughts on engagement?  Is it the real deal?  Can it change the direction of your company?

(PS Dont forget, I have a big surprise in my next post which is the hammer that will drive down this last nail)

American Idol OWNS TV!   It is the most popular show on TV today and has been for many years.  I know dozens of people who not only watch the show, but are obsessed with it.  Their Tuesday’s and Wednesdays are always booked.  They live and die by what happens each week.  They watch and read as much as they can.  They spend an hour or two voting each week.  The amazing thing is the wide range of watcher segments.  It goes from teenage to retired.  It is more than just a singing competition… It is a National and probably Global obsession.  I hope this case study can bring the elements of engagement together for you.

What Makes American Idol The Top Rated Show…

American Idol encompasses engagement.  That is why the show is a continuous hit.  When you combine all the core elements of engagement and add in the chance for viewers to particpate in the show and really involving them and making them feel a part of it by allowing them to vote.   It is a winning combination.  I feel if the judges picked who stayed and who went, it would not be as widely successful and why it has dwarfed Survivor, Road Rules, Big Brother and others.

American Idol Uses Several Engagement Strategies… Yesterday, I mentioned how American Idol invited feedback from the judges and this gets the audience engaged.  It is LIVE.  There is no editing.  It is real time feedback.  The judges are put on the spot to offer genuine, authentic, and transparent observations about the performances.  It makes people choose sides.  They agree with the judges or they don’t.

It Creates deep connections and associations with the viewers… All of the performers are also genuine & authentic.  They talk about them so you feel like you really know them.  A big difference from dancing with the stars.  They take you behind the scenes and show the towns excitement for them and what it took for them to get where they are.  Not only do the viewers connect and identify with each participant, they connect with other viewers.  The have created an American Idol community with chat rooms, forums to talk about the show.  Up to date info.  This makes it spread horizontally.
American Idol Gets It… People spend hours not just watching the show, but actually taking their most greatest asset, time, to vote.  That participatory involvement is crucial.  It takes the viewer from a bistandard to the action oriented verb.  No longer a viewer, but a RAVING FAN!!!  I expect in the not to distant future we will see Twitter or another instant messaging tool enabled on the show more engaging than texting brought to the limelight.  Constant feeds, instant engagement on the TV or online.  That will take it to another level.

What Corporations & Businesses Can Learn From American Idol… Obviously what this whole platform is about.  Engage your audience.  Make it a two way stream.  One where participation is not only welcomed, but expected.  Determine ways that will have action, and determine a call to action.  Make it part of the strategy and not just an after thought.  Encourage Engagement.  Make people choose sides.  Take polls and have clients and employees part of the decision making process.  Make them feel they have a part in the success.  That their opinion matters and they can add value.  This will draw not only experiences, but form a closer identity, connection and association with your company & brand.

What engaging strategies are you using?  What ways can you involve your audience?  What ways can you encourage engagement?

In our building of our house, measurement is the roof. We all want feedback. It is natural. We want it whether it is good or bad.

My wife loves American Idol. I am not really a fan, but have watched the show with her a couple of times. The fans vote to see who will continue on, but they have this panel of judges who critique the performance. From what I can tell the judges have no power on who moves on but everyone anxiously sits on the edge of their seats and awaits for the judges reactions to the performance like it means something. Paula Abdul typically tries to be overly nice and give positive critiques, but you have this one guy named Simon. You either love him or hate him. To get him to give you anything positive you REALLY have to EARN it because if he says something nice it is a rare feat.

Feel free to add your own comments at the bottom of this article on what’s worked for you.  It is a great way to make a good impression and meet new contacts.

We all want feedback…

We want some indication of where we are and how we are doing. We want to keep our finger on the pulse. See if we are alive or dead…

Feedback can be used for reinforcement and continuous improvement…

A company wants feedback from its customers and employees want feedback from its supervisors.  They want confirmation or be able to take corrective measures. The worst scenario is not knowing either way.  That leaves you status quo.  There is no such thing as staying the same.  You are either getting better or worse.  If you are not getting better than your competition is closing that gap, which is in turn making you worse.

Tiger Woods Relentless Pursuit of Perfection…

I just had lunch with Hank Haney, who is Tiger Woods golf coach and he told a story about how all of these players were saying they were working to be the number one player in the world.  After reading one of the articles, Tiger looked at Hank and said… “Do they not think I am going to get any better?”…   Hank went on to say… the only thing Tiger concentrates on is getting better.  He said he never has once heard him mention breaking any record or making any certain amount of money.  If he continues to improve, the other things will take care of themselves.  That is why Tiger is the best.

How do you utilize feedback from your clients and employees?  Share how feedback positively or negatively has helped you?

I have a 4 year old son.  I will be working on my laptop and he will come up to me and ask me to put batteries in a car or train and I will automatically respond… OK.  He will put his hands on my face and turn it so I am looking him eye to eye.  I know you are not listening to me.  What he means is NOW!!!

Are All Women Right??? My wife and most any woman will call it “selective” hearing.  Men are famous for being told they hear only what they want to hear. Companies are just as guilty.  They hear what they want to hear.  Their perception is their reality.  Unfortunately, that is the quickest way to cut your own throat.  The bad news is they do it to themselves.  Active listening is participatory.  It is a two way dialogue.  It lends itself to engagement.  What do you know…

Watch Out, I Am About to Get on My Soapbox… If there is a magic bullet in the world, it would be communication.  That could probably solve and prevent most World Wars, National Issues, Divorces, and any other disengagement. Communication starts with active listening. I think most would agree that most companies have silos.  Every division, every dept, every team is on its own island.  I can’t wait to start talking about startegies to fix all this.  We are just identifing the issues.  Think about a perfect world… where everyone in the company feels wanted, they exchange information freely. They are collaborating and feeling like they are part of a team they actually believe in.  They are connected to one another, they believe in one another.  They feel they are part of something bigger, a tight knit community….

What ways can you create open communiation, collaboration & active listening?  What would need to happen for that to take place at your office?

In our building of our house, performance is the furnace.  It is the heat…the action.  Engagement is the ignition to performance.  – Execution.  Performance is anything worthy of your attention.  We all want to be part of something bigger.

Feel free to add your own comments at the bottom of this article on what’s worked for you.  It is a great way to make a good impression and meet new contacts.

If you want to recharge and create an atmosphere of energy, passion and performance…

Then start engaging clients and employees. Engagement is two way and on going.  It is like the Energizer bunny… that keeps going, and going and going…

When I am talking about performance…

I am not talking about A performance where you are sitting in an audience watching a play.  I am talking about participatory performance.  Where the audience and performers are blurred.  They are one.  Customers are active to the vendors that serve them. Employees are intertwined with upper management.

America is a results driven country…

Results are driven by performance.  Performance is about how well you execute.  If we are measured by our performances and results, then we need to make sure we put everything into driving the highest results & performances possible.

Engaged Employees Deliver Positive Customer Experiences…

Studies show that an engaged employee has higher productivity and an engaged customer buys more and is more loyal.  The main reason is they have a higher emotional identification with the company.  It makes it mission critical to engage by caring, sharing, involving, understanding, connecting, and appreciating your employees and customers.

That leads us to our next pillar of engagement…Genuinity, Authenticity & Transparency.

What ways are you igniting performance at your company with your customers and employees?

In our building of our house, appreciation is the artwork & pictures we display.  It shows our excitement and gratitude.  Your clients are why you are in business, so they are the lifeblood of your company and your company can only be as good as its employees.  I saw a staggering number that 80% of your clients and employees are unhappy.  That is shocking, yes…disturbing, absolutely …scary… HELLO!!!  Without customers you don’t have revenues and profits, without employees you don’t have anyone to service these customers.  Everyone likes a pat on the back.  Everyone likes to hear their own name.  The higher the performer, the more of a sponge they are for appreciation and recognition. 

Feel free to add your comments at the bottom of this article on what’s worked for you. It’s a great way to make a good impression and meet new contacts

Appreciation relates to the increase of value in an asset… 

Therefore, it is a sign of respect and honor.  It shows where you place your value or ultimately where you don’t. Appreciation can be turned on like a light switch and can take very little in cost and even effort.  It really starts from a change of attitude.  Let me give you an example.  If I handed you a baseball.  You would say great, thanks.   But then I tell you that baseball was the 755th homerun ball of Hank Aaron’s and it was worth a lot of money.  All of a sudden that ball has “placed” value on it.  The ball didn’t change.  It was the same ball I originally gave you, but how you perceived the ball changed. 

The whole concept of precious metals is built on this concept…

Think about it.  The first person who found gold in prehistoric times said, wow, look at this stuff.  People are going to want this and I am going to place a value  on this and I can trade people for food and things I want due to the demand of the product.  People have spilt blood over these precious metals and many of lives have been lost.   It is a color’d rock for crying out loud.  Diamonds are the same thing.  What if people didn’t want them and said these are just stupid rocks from the ground or if Chad Rothschild were ruler of the earth and said, these precious metals are now worthless, would people still want them (other than my wife)?  Just for decoration? Your employees and clients are the same…PRECIOUS!  The great news is all you have to do is “declare” them a value and then they are. Even better is you can do the same with your spouse.  Try that when you go home tonight and see the response.

What ways have you shown appreciation to your clients and employees?  Share your successes for us all to learn from.

In our house we are building, connection is the furniture we put in the house.  How and where it is placed tells a story, and where we will gather and how.  If you were in a room, you would naturally put the chairs facing each other and not back to back.  You would want to encourage connection and communication.  Most organizations have sofas back to back where everyone is on islands inhibiting connection.  Does that make sense…why would they do that? 

Feel free to add your comments at the bottom of this article on what’s worked for you. It’s a great way to make a good impression and meet new contacts.

Clients & Employees that are connected are passionate… 

Go to any College or Professional  Football game or College Basketball game and see this in action.  The sporting event is the “product”, yet the ticket holder which is the customer, will paint themselves in the “products” color and act all crazy supporting the “product”….RAVING FANS.  There are other examples.  Harley Davidson… people tattoo their logo on their bodies and are disciples of the brand.   I am making it my goal to get one of my clients or employees I manage to paint or tattoo my name on their bodies and show that same enthusiasm and passion for me and my services… Any Takers…J

There are several ways to create connections… 

One way is to do stewardship reviews.  Talk about where you are and where you want to be.  By talking about where you are, it creates understanding. By talking about the future, creates connections and commitment by engaging in the development process of what that will look like. The best example of that is during the courting phase of your significant other.  You are connecting with that person by sharing and dreaming of what the future will look like.  How you are going to handle certain situations, how many kids you are going to have, what type of house and community you want to live in….  The next step in the courting phase is ENGAGEMENT prior to the commitment of marriage.  It is not coincidence.  It is the process of how it draws the couple closer and ignites passion.  The other person on the other end needs to feel special, feel important, part of the success of the group and appreciated.  This leads us to our next topic of appreciation.

What ways are you creating connections?  Share your successes for everyone to learn.

In our house we are building, understanding is the air filling the structure.  It is like oxygen.  It is the passions that drive us.  If we don’t understand what drives our employees and clients, how can we expect to help and add value to them.  It would make no more sense for your organization to speak a different language than your employees and clients.  

Feel free to add your comments at the bottom of this article on what’s worked for you. It’s a great way to make a good impression and meet new contacts.

Do You Grasp the Importance of Understanding…

Most organizations don’t grasp the importance, significance and implications of thoroughly understanding and knowing their employees and clients.  By just the act of understanding, you create an affinity or a strong connection with your employees and clients.  The stronger the understanding the closer you naturally become.  They are usually your biggest supporters and raving fans.  They want to tell everyone they know about you.  Guess what research shows about employees that are engaged… customer service levels are higher.                                                                                  

I heard a cute story that illustrates this point…

There was a farmer who was posting a sign about some puppies for sale. A little boy walked up and asked if he could buy one of the puppies and the farmer said they were expensive and not sure if he could afford one.  He reached into his pocket and mostly got fuzz but said he had a quarter and asked if he could at least look.  The farmer obliged and took the boy up there and the mother dog came running up with a few little pups right behind her.  The little boy lighted up as he saw one of the pups.  It was hobbling and having a hard time catching up to the others.  The little boy said, I WANT THAT ONE with all the excitement he could have.  The farmer looked and said, why would you want that one, it wont ever be able to run & play like the others.  The little boy pulled up his pants and showed a metal brace on his leg.  I don’t run very well myself and he will need someone who will understand…

Trying to understand your employees & clients is the key to connection.  Connection is the next topic we will cover.

What ways are you trying to understand your employees and clients?  Share your successes so we can all learn from each other.