How to get your customers to like you

The successful transformation of the customer experience is important from the most humble street vendor to the largest multinational. It counts across the globe, in the US, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
Customer transformation is quite a mouthful but it really means changing the customer's perceptions, attitudes and behaviours from negative or neutral to positive regarding your company and services or products offered by you and then maintaining that positive perception. Some companies believe that customer transformation works if employees are simply cheerful and helpful to their customers. But this approach ignores whether the customer is satisfied with the product or service offered. There should be a direct link between a customer's favourable opinion and perception of who you are and what you sell and your bottom line.
But how do you get there? Rather than talk about "12 steps" or a list of rules, some anecdotes from watching clients and their marketing efforts represent good examples of unsuccessful and successful customer transformation. Some work and some don't but those that work, pay off in direct improvements in revenues and profitability for the company.
First let's talk about those that didn't work. The best one is the famous case of a very well-known consulting firm recommending that their client, a leading manufacturer of consumer refrigeration equipment, adopt a rotary screw compressor design to their consumer refrigerators. This design was a miniature of the large screw compressors used in buildings, grocery store frozen food cases and cold storage facilities. This design had the advantages of 'manufacturability', low energy consumption, low maintenance and low noise when compared to the piston compressors used in all freezers and refrigerators of that time.
While only a few consumers would ever know, the refrigerators and freezers using this technology would give them better performance, lower energy consumption and less noise than what they had now. There would be a very positive transformation of customer attitudes and perceptions; not for rotary screw compressors; but for the name brand which provided consumers with many benefits above and beyond what was then available, for a slightly higher cost.
All of the elements of customer transformation were in place: an improved product with better performance that would convey a very positive association to the buyer of this new refrigerator or freezer. On the other side of the equation, the company would lower manufacturing costs and improve its margins.
But it didn't work. All, not just some, of the hundreds of thousands of the units sold using rotary screw compressors failed within 2 years. The total cost to the company to replace all of these compressors was in the range of one-half billion dollars, (probably $1 billion in today's dollars). What happened? It was a seal that was not sufficient for the pressures and heat. Not a problem for the large rotary screw compressors, but a big problem for a smaller one.
The main take-away from this is that marketing is a supporting function to a company's products, services and business, not a driver. In order to change customer perceptions, a company actually has to deliver; not promises based on some recommendations of some very smart consultants.
What has worked? BMW has been able to sell what is sized and equipped as a compact passenger car for double or triple prices of comparable compact vehicles for the past 40 years. It is significantly less reliable than all Asian and most US and European vehicles. Its fuel economy is in the middle of the pack. But its 3 series is considered the world's most recognised car for superlative performance, a true driver's car. What happened was that German engineers got it right first before the BMW marketing people got involved. Their job was easy after that: "Freude am Faren" is easily understood by anyone who enjoys driving: "Sheer Driving Pleasure" in English. Its in-line engine can be turbo-charged, bored or direct injected giving it many different driving properties for different drivers. There is a 325, 330, 350 and M, with either rear-wheel drive or four-wheel drive (xDrive) all using the same manufacturing line. The vehicle's suspension is taut but not harsh, based on real world experience. The body style changes are evolutionary dating back to the 2002: subtle; not "boy racer".
BMW has been able to carve out a niche in the global automobile industry that is less dependent on rebates and end of year clearances because the product meets and exceeds most buyers' expectations. Buying this car also infers that you know something about cars. This transformation has resulted in consumers considering BMWs in all shapes and sizes before other brands, regardless of price. But watch out BMW, Mercedes Benz, Infiniti, Lexus and Audi have finally figured this approach out.
The main take-away from this is that the BMW product is engineered and produced as planned, no more, no less. It has limitations but is clearly a leader in drivability and performance. No more, no less.
This moves us now to the "new economy" driven by Snap-Chat, Instagram, Yelp and many others that help consumers make an educated choice. But it hasn't really changed that much. The best restaurants really make and serve the best food. The best carpenters really do the best jobs. On-line surveys and on-line reviews bear this out: Marketing makes something good, better; but never makes something better, that it isn't.
The writer is partner at Cedar Management Consulting International. Views expressed are his own and do not reflect the newspaper's policy.