The fine art of giving a sh*t

By Jedd Cokayne, Business Unit Manager at The MediaShop

The British and Irish Lions Tour has now been given the green light and will take place in South Africa! Sanity prevails……

I am in my element now that we are starting to get a steady flow of professional sports on the box – I end up watching anything and everything that is thrown at me. I even watched the World Snooker Championships that surprisingly made for riveting viewing! In and amongst my marathon sports binge I also caught up on a rugby game in the UK Premiership of the Newcastle Falcons.

As I was getting comfortable and sipping on an ice-cold beer, I happened to notice that the vast majority of their players had a small sticker and sensor behind their ears. Having the ability to pause live TV, at the next close-up opportunity that appeared of one of the players I paused and lo and behold I wasn’t seeing things (I had only had one beer).

Being the ever-curious person I am, I immediately got onto the interweb and did some investigation into this very peculiar sticker on the player’s necks. It turns out to be a sensor that measures potential concussion and possible long-term effects that could cause dementia etc. It is a joint trial by the Newcastle Falcons and Durham University measuring impact to the head area and long-term effects thereof.

The trial has now progressed even more and moved on to analysing blood, saliva and urine in an effort to discover biomarkers due to concussion injuries. Having suffered a number of concussions in my short and illustrious rugby career (Wanderers 2^nd XV) I think this is an amazing initiative and sheds a light on where technology is taking us, the advancements that are happening on a daily basis and the potential uses for businesses around the world. Just today I read a number of articles that caught my attention like

1. YouTube tests auto-detect tool to serve ads against videos.
2. Twitter testing a shop button
3. Tik Tok rival, YouTube Shorts
4. No longer just e-commerce, now T-commerce

These were just a few that I saw but it proved to me once again just how quickly the speed at which technology is changing and how it’s been hurried along due to the current pandemic we are going through and the unrelenting lust to meet the consumer’s needs.

Over the last few months I have aged not so gracefully having to read the plethora of articles that all start with the phrase “New Normal”. There is nothing normal about the situation we find ourselves in, everything is new and we are having to develop our own playbooks on how to win in this changed environment. Now more than ever we are we are having to do a lot of introspection, looking at our core offerings and building on those to not only survive the current situation but also to develop key strategies that grow and develop our businesses to remain profitable in the long term. Not so easy in the current climate.

However, the one consistent area of a business that should remain a key focus in these unchartered waters is the level of client service we receive as well as dish out. I am not sure if it’s the sign of the times, unrealistic expectations or just a pure lack of interest but I feel service levels have hit an all-time low and show no sign of dissipating. In my mind this is the ideal time to showcase your client service abilities, the understanding of your client’s business, the knowledge you have of the segment you work in, the ability to see opportunities where others don’t and overall just giving a sh*t!!

This old school renewed focus on client service comes at a time where clients are looking for more than just traditional discounted value, they are looking for that business partnership with key suppliers to get them through the tough times and out the other end. In fact, it’s so much more than just traditional client service principles, it’s a focus on

1. Consistent interaction with clients that drive experiences to foster attachment, show relevance and build lifetime value.
2. Ensuring your interaction is distinctive enough to generate interest from other parties who want to work with you.
3. Deliver value and attachment that people will happily pay for.
4. Having a deep focussed customer obsession.
5. Being ruthlessly pragmatic.
6. Driving innovation to establish emotional connections.
7. Inspiring clients at every opportunity.

The above list is not exhaustive as client service develops organically depending on the needs at that specific time. It’s how you adapt and respond to those needs that will make you stand apart and prove true partnership and leadership.

The first quarter of this year has flown past with some dramatic changes and developments changing the landscape we work in. How we embrace these changes and hone our skills will fundamentally influence how we are perceived in the market and hopefully flourish. It’s time to care that little bit more……..