Branding: The Importance of Clarity

Every piece of marketing your company produces must be branded and clear.

Every piece of stationery your company uses must be branded and clear.

Why am I telling you this?

Well, just the other day my husband ordered some more central heating oil. As we have 2 dogs, he asked the company phone me the day before they delivered the oil so I could make sure the dogs were safely tucked away so the oil tank could be safely accessed.

This isn’t an usual request and one that all the oil companies we’ve dealt with have been happy to carry out.

Not this time.

After popping to the Post Office, I came back to find this on the doormat:

Apart from the fact that no one bothered to phone to let me know the oil was coming, there are a few other issues.

Spot the deliberate error?

As I mentioned earlier, it was my husband who ordered the oil.

The image shows that, despite leaving me a note, the company name isn’t shown anywhere. In fact there’s no branding whatsoever.

The other issue is that the ‘Please call us on…….’ section has been left blank.

Therefore:

1. I don’t know who the company are
2. I have no phone number, so can’t call them to rearrange delivery

My only option is to text my husband to let him know so he can phone the company.

Customer service? Non-existent.

It doesn’t take a lot to help your customers.

The simple addition of a logo, company name and phone number would have made a huge difference here. Granted, the requested phone call prior to delivery would have been useful, but by shoving a generic and anonymous card through the door does nothing to enhance their reputation (whoever they are).

You see it’s the little things that make a big difference. Make sure all your correspondence with your customers reflects the quality of your company – your reputation is at stake.

Author: Sally Ormond