by Emma Heald
Anyone who knows me knows that when it comes to football, I’m an England fan all the way. No matter how miserable their performance on the pitch, the next time there’s a match I’ll be there with my England shirt on and my flag waving happily from the front of the house.
So England’s results in this year’s World Cup got me thinking about all the parallels between football fans, and the loyal customers of many of the brands we are lucky to serve at Quaxar. The most important thing that they both have in common is that die-hard soccer fans, like your most loyal customers, have high expectations. Here is the main thing I’ve pondered on while I’ve bemoaned England’s disappointing run in South Africa:
Once you have loyal fans or customers, you need to work to keep them. If there’s one thing that the World Cup shows us it’s that our brand loyalties run deep. A football fan is a “brand evangelist”, and we show our allegiances through the shirts we wear and the colors we paint our faces. One commercial currently in rotation on ESPN says that “soccer fans are loyal until the day they die.” But even though you may think a fan’s loyalty is unshakeable, no matter what, this World Cup has shown us that loyalty can be damaged if you don’t live up to expectations. A football team, like any company, can’t afford to take its fans for granted. I’ll give you a couple of examples:
- Les Bleus. Anyone who was watching the World Cup closely knows about the French team’s humiliating early departure from South Africa, amidst behavior that would be better suited to a daytime soap opera. France’s “brand” was severely damaged, on a world stage. Their loyal fans were embarrassed, and their loyalty to the brand suffered. The French football team has a lot of work to do to make their fans proud to wear the French shirt again.
- Wayne Rooney. I’m not sure that many beyond the most avid England fans watched England’s miserable football display against Algeria. English fans in the stadium, who had travelled thousands of miles and spent thousands of dollars to support their team, booed the English players as they left the field. They expected something better. And what did they get from our star player? No apologies or explanations, but an expletive-laced rant against England fans, all captured on television. Rooney had it the wrong way around. He expected loyalty from his customers no matter what kind of product he gave them. They, in turn, reserved the right to express their displeasure when they didn’t get what they paid for.
So what does this tell us about keeping our most loyal customers happy?
- Do your utmost to understand, and then meet, their expectations. If you don’t, be prepared to hear about their disappointment.
- Respect the value your loyal customers place on your brand. Your most loyal customers incorporate your brand as part of their identity. You need to show them that you will not compromise your brand value.
- Give your customers a place to air their grievances and give you their comments, and listen to them with respect. Do your best to let them know how you will address their concerns.
- And if you really mess up? Say you’re sorry; and promise you’ll do better next time.
World Cup 2014, anyone?