|
Vodafone: God laughs at those who plan
In Australia we hate our mobile phone companies. Years of false promises that 'yes', these
companies operate 'making life easier', have left most consumers suspicious and resentful of the
mobile telcos. There are few better examples of organisations repeatedly exploiting consumers
whilst promoting values of care and integrity than that of the inception and development of mobile
phones in Australia.
So who would dare to enter this hostile market and make even bigger promises? Who would have the
audacity to position themselves alongside the companies we love to hate and say 'Do it your way',
indicating and advocating customer control? Whoever would, should be prepared to weather extreme
consumer scrutiny and follow through on every single promise. Enter Vodafone.
The Promise
'Do it your way'. What a statement. A statement to a market made up of furious people who look
forward to spreading cancerous PR about telcos to anyone who will listen. Amidst this market of
rage, Vodafone has identified some opportunistic truth: disgruntled people are desperately seeking
alternatives and will move fast when they are found.
'Do it your way' means freedom and choice. It encourages you to forget about what you think you
know about mobile Telcos and start again, and this time 'your way'. It yells individuality and
tailoring to different needs. It says more than just 'customer knows best'. It says whether the
customer knows best or not, we have the ability to cater for all needs.
To fully understand the promise, we met with the General Manager Brand & Communications Rosie
Gray-Spencer and Director of Brand & People Deb Howcroft. Always looking for a chink in a brand's
armour, Brand Behaviour investigated the relationship between marketing promises and internal
fulfillment. Our findings were nothing short of extraordinary. In the past few years Vodafone has
moved from the ranks of an 'also ran' to a real market shaker and now we know why. At Vodafone,
they understand that the brand is the people and the people are the brand.
As we focused the Brand Behaviour sights on our new bold target, we found that Head Office jargon
centered around seven key values and the embodiment of a value focused organisation. According to
Vodafone, the way in which the Vodafone promise is to be realised externally, is through a
universal understanding and adoption of the company values internally. So passionate about these
values, Vodafone paints murals tastefully and professionally throughout each office reminding
people of where they work and why they are there. In another display of fierce brand passion,
Vodafone retrench those who do not 'fit' or who repeatedly display behaviour contrary to that of
the brand. Talk about standing for something, the Vodafone brand values policy demonstrates zero
tolerance.
To encourage brand value adoption, Vodafone spends more per capita on people and culture than any
of the other telcos. Full budget stage productions, road shows and training conferences run
around the calendar to ensure that all Vodafone staff have significant and varied contact with the
current brand values.
All well and good, however how effective are Vodafone at delivering on their promise?
The Delivery
As always, Brand Behaviour became a customer to experience first hand value delivery. We changed
carriers, phones and plan options to test the system. We went to multiple Vodafone outlets and
partners. We rang all the Vodafone directory and help lines. Could we really do it our way, and as
a result feel freedom and abundance of choice? To borrow a well recognised tag, 'Yes' we could.
Whatever was going on at Vodafone, was working at a customer service and product delivery level.
All Vodafone staff that we spoke with displayed similar personal values. We found the Vodafone
'family' (as they like to call all staff and partners) to be: fun, supportive, fair dinkum and
different. Four of the seven company values. Because of this consistency of character, we
developed a high level of trust, and with that, the strength of the Vodafone brand grew in a place
where no telco has ever been before, in our hearts. OK, so that was just our experience, how did
other people's experiences differ?
What you think
In an effort to compare brand promises with customer experience, Brand Behaviour surveyed more
than 100 Vodafone customers and asked questions relating to their brand and product experience.
The results were as positive as we have ever seen. The majority of customers said that Vodafone
allowed a sense of freedom unlike any other mobile telco. The concept of 'no plans' and the
introduction of the Red Sim, was the most talked about product feature that showed correlation to
the brand promise 'do it your way'.
The Verdict
Bakers Delight, Virgin Blue and now Vodafone have all demonstrated sound long term strategy by
investing heavily in the relationship between brand and people. With their competitors continuing
to get it very wrong, expect Vodafone to start eating into market share owned by those companies
who are only really interested in shareholder profit and a favorable investor annual report.
Special Suggestion
If you are reading this and your business card reads 'Marketing...', pick up the phone and organise
a meeting with your HR and Sales departments. Ask these departments to explain the company or
product brand values to you. Then ask how these values are demonstrated when communicating
internally and with customers. If you don't receive concise and confident answers, then be aware
that you may be reading a less positive article about your company over the next year.
|
