The Importance of the Personal Touch in Business

We all know how well a shirt fits is an essential factor in how well an apparel promotion turns out. In most cases, a one-size-fits-all option just doesn’t work.

But fit isn’t the only aspect where the one-size-fits-all approach fails. Customer service and engagement—whether it’s for clients or end-users—needs to be personalized.

We want to make people happy. And, people want to feel connected. They want to know someone’s listening.

(Image via Hansonmerchandise.net)

Are you listening?

Recently, two clothing-related companies showcased just how dedicated they are to employing the personal touch.

Rent the Runway, an online service where people can rent designer dresses and accessories rather than purchase them, turned to Snapchat to engage directly with its audience and show the customer how a dress will fit before ordering it. Customers can use Snapchat to send the Rent the Runway team of 250 the name or image of the dress in question and their size, height and general shape. In response, the team finds an employee of a similar size to model the dress and discuss its features in a video snap to the customer.

While the effort has only been in effect for a few weeks, so far, the company has been able to match each customer request with one of its 250 team members. It’s building customer confidence in the brand, and engaging them on a social medium that many businesses are still determining how to navigate.

Then there is Orin.

Orin touts itself as crowdsourced activewear—and it is living up to the title. On Aug. 8, it launched a survey that lets end-users decide which products they want most (and in what colors), how those products should be made (in which country, what type of factory, for how much and using what materials), and what models should be used to showcase them (race, body type).

The survey strives to create a transparency between the company and the end-user that it can build the foundation of its brand and customer base around.

Admittedly, these are fairly extreme approaches to the idea of personalized customer service, but in both instances, the companies show they value the concerns and input of their end-users.

Perhaps there is something here to inspire you to do the same. Even if it’s on a smaller scale.

How can you better understand those who place the order and those who will wear the end-result? How can you ensure the end-user will feel connected to the promotion (and want to wear it again and again), and your client will see its success (and want to do more business with you)?

A company depends on the strength of its products, and the products should depend on the strength of their companies. Sure, one can exist without the other, but to much lesser levels of success.

To quote Meg Ryan in “You’ve Got Mail,” one of my all-time favorite movies: “Whatever else anything is, it ought to begin by being personal.”