Gary Vaynerchuck tugs at my heartstrings during his visit to Portland
Two weeks ago, Gary Vaynerchuk visited Powell’s Books here in Portland. I was so excited!
If it weren’t for my good friend and mentor, Lori Richardson, I wouldn’t have known he was going to be in town. (Thank you, Lori!)
Gary was in the middle of a book tour to promote both his new book The Thank You Economy
There’s a saying — you’ve probably heard it — that people will not remember what you do or what you say, but they will always remember how you made them feel.
What that’s certainly true with my experience interacting with Gary (which is why I took notes!). His core message is around what he calls the “humanization of business,” and the importance of engaging with every single person.
He’s a man who walks his talk because, after I stood in the line at Powell’s to meet him and have him autograph my copy of his book, he not only thanked me (It is The Thank You Economy
Wasn’t that my line?
(After all, I’m definitely NOT the celebrity here.)
My point is that to Gary in that moment, I was not just a number. (Or, at least he knows how to pretend pretty well LOL)
And, you can be sure that whatever he got from the book I purchased wouldn’t buy him one measely skin off a squashed grape, let alone a bottle of his favorite wine (The 92 Kendall Jackson Chardonnay and 87 Opus One were two that he mentioned, by the way.).
If the purpose of engagement is to seek and fulfill on regular opportunities to touch the emotional center of our customers (and both I and Gary believe this it is), then Gary certainly hit the mark with us at this event.
Coincidentally, the March 2011 issue of The New York Enterprise Report, did a short interview with Gary Vaynerchuck.
In both the article interview and at our event at Powell’s, Gary offered that the old way of doing things (He/she whose advertising is the loudest or spends the most money) isn’t working any longer.
Today’s consumer’s loyalty belongs to the businesses that go for their heartstrings.
How do you do this?
It’s all about scaling the one-to-one engagement concept, making sure every lead, prospect, and customer feels you love them.
The example Gary gave in the article was a perfect way for any company to monitor the needs of their customers and deliver the unexpected that absolutely surprises and delights:
Suppose, Gary offers, you get into a car accident and you send out a tweet of what just occurred. Starbucks replies back to you that they are just around the corner from you and are rushing some coffee over to you right now to make your wait for the tow truck a little bit better.
Who does that?
Well, you do, if you buy into “the humanization of business” that is The Thank You Economy
How will you apply this in your business?
