Marketing from the third ring

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It all has to do with proximity, being in the neighbourhood, being where it happens, adjacency, proximité. The driver of the past was always the first to be where the problem occurred. And could therefore also be the first to offer help. To be where it happens. It is increasingly a condition for success. In the past, the customer came to the shop, now the shop has to go to the customer. There is no escape from it anymore. Those who don't do it are the spectators in the third ring.

A few examples. Someone who has problems with a supplier likes to talk about it. After brother cell phone list all, nothing is better than complaining. And where do you complain? On Twitter and Facebook. So where should customer service be at least? On Twitter and Facebook. More and more parties are starting to realize this. There are more and more, KLM, Hi-KPN, XS4ALL I know from experience, who respond to a Twitter complaint within a few hours. It is starting to work. Received an email from Wehkamp this morning. Whether I am interested in the top 50 dresses. No, thank you. Marketing from the third ring.

The new serviceability has everything to do with listening and proximity. Listening has become very easy, because we humans are so kind as to type in the conversations we have and offer them digitally. A smart search program does the rest. Proximity is then a fulfillment of listening. Listening is the impulse for responding. Responding like the machinist of the past: with a crank and burner on the box and getting to work when necessary. Ice and weather permitting.

This column was also published in Het Financieele Dagblad .