1998 white BMW motorcycle
Oconee Cellar owner Matt Garofalo recently bought this 1998 white BMW motorcycle. Matt is not a biker; Matt is a wine and spirits store owner/operator on Lake Oconee in middle Georgia. As you might expect, there are backstories galore to this unusual purchase. For starters, Oconee Cellar opened its doors in August 1998. It is the exact same type motorcycle you saw James Bond ride in the hit movie "Tomorrow Never Dies."
The motorcycle, in Matt's words, "embodies Oconee Cellar's dedication to excellence, attention to detail, and customer satisfaction. Oconee Cellar strives to make the finer things in life available to our customers. Our pledge is: 'We know wine and spirits, so you don't have to!'" Parked in the front window, the white bike has become a conversation piece that has amplified the reach and resonance of the Oconee Cellar brand. "My challenge," he told me, "Is to always live up to the promise this bike implies."
Beyond The Hot Tattoo
Cattle branding started in America because all cattle shared grazing range in the West. This practice was later changed with barbed-wire fence. When the time came to herd cows to market, the hot tattoo was an easy method to distinguish a specific cow. The golden arches today help us spot a certain fast-food eatery; an apple with a bite removed a particular computer company. Brands are tools to bolster customer trust. They communicate "consistency" and "reliability" to the marketplace.
"Brand" is often anchored to image-related matters—signage, logo, or impression. Organizations guard brands with the same intensity they protect patents, trademarks, and secrets. If a new hamburger business attempted to use silver arches as its logo, you can bet there will be a gaggle of aggressive lawyers on their doorsteps before you could say, "Big Mac."
But there is another side of the concept of brand. Branding in the wild West was a tool to ascertain ownership. The "Circle J" brand was not just the moniker of cattle associated with the ranch along the West side of Spring River. It also told everyone that the cows belonged to that ranch.
There is a big difference between recognizing a McDonald's and adoring it. So, what steps change "the Starbucks at the corner of Third and Central" into "my Starbucks?" And how can an outstanding customer experience be a tool for growing the kind of trust in a brand that engenders customer devotion, not just confidence? Matt uses four features to convert "trust in a brand" into "love for a brand"—inclusion, spirit, trust, and purpose.
1. Make Customers Your Partners
Lady Gaga is considered the queen of loyalty generation with her "Little Monsters" fan club. Her fan club members' opinions are solicited; they get insider information, plus discounts on shows and merchandise. Matt employs similar strategies. With the help of a Kentucky brewery, he created his signature brand of bourbon. He had the brewery create five flavors in numbered test bottles to choose the brand that would sport his label. He could have test-tasted them all himself. But instead, he sought the help of his customers who gleefully played adjudicators. Guess what? Not only did he sell hundreds of bottles in just a few days to adoring fans who felt their fingerprints were on this unique creation, but he also repeated the process with five other bourbon brands.
2. Make Customers' Experiences Highly Spirited
Every customer who walks into Matt's store knows Tito. Tito is not the popular vodka, it is Matt's little dog. Tito is the greeter and is friendly with every person who crosses the threshold. I have often overheard other customers ask, "Where's Tito?" if he is not at the front door or on his bed in the store corner. The holiday prize contest was played by texting "Titosholiday." When the local magazines publish stories on pets of merchants, you can bet Tito and Matt get front-page billing. "It is not just that there is a puppy in the store that makes people smile," one of Matt's associates described, "It is what Tito does to the spirit of the store." It goes with, "Can I take those to your car for you?" or the fun store sign that reads, "Nothing says 'I mean business' like a shopping cart in a liquor store."
3. Trust Your Customers with all Your Heart
Oconee Cellar is a place that meets "I forgot my wallet" with, "I know you. Pay me next time you’re in the store." When my friend Bob walked out without his credit card, one of Matt's associates mentioned it to me as Bob was getting into his car to leave the parking lot. I yelled to Bob, but he was too far away to hear. "I know Bob well and he only lives a few blocks from here. I will be glad to take it to him." "Sure," he replied as he handed me Bob's card without hesitation. Now, here is the other side of full-throated trust. When I gave Bob his credit card, his wife, Lisa, went straight to the phone to call Oconee Cellar and thank them for trusting me. My wife also called to let them know the card reached its rightful owner. What would it take for that level of trust to happen with your customers? Bob still gets a lump in his throat when reminded of what extreme trust did to us all that day!
4. Enfold Your Customers in a Gallant Purpose
The drumroll in Matt's description of the white motorcycle was that it was like the one used by James Bond in the movie "Tomorrow Never Dies." Unpacking it for me, Matt spun the tale of a long-term commitment to his customers. He also chose a movie character famous for living life to the fullest and enjoying the very best. You can find everyday spirits in Matt's store, and you can find unique brews with price tags in the thousands. His newsletters and blogs are targeted at education, not just sales. He has a Wine Club and a Connoisseur Club for the same purposes. People would describe the store like Horst Schulze, founder of Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, described his hotel properties—"warm, yet refined elegance." If Matt's store were a bar you would feel the urge to order a vodka martini, shaken, not stirred!
