“I wasn’t very impressed by DKY.”
Talk about a wake-up call. After an agency presentation to the Board of a new client – a presentation that we walked away from feeling pretty good – the CEO emailed this ringing endorsement to our main client contact. Not the reaction we were looking for.
But wait, there’s more.
“All they talked about was how great they are, and the great work they are doing for other clients.”
Ouch.
Then, the knockout punch.
“What are they going to do for us?”
For more than two decades DKY has remained steadfast in our belief that what really matters in brand marketing is the customer. We consistently promote customer-centric thinking and strategies. Our recommendations and work must, at their core, address customer needs.
Yet with all of this talk and conviction we can still manage to slip into “look how great we are” mode. I am happy to report that we are still working with this client. And even though it still makes me cringe to think about that near-disaster of a presentation, we are very grateful for the reminder.
At the end of the day, it’s not the great features, or the patented design, or the proven technology, or the clever campaign that matters. What matters most is the customer.
Our client hit the nail on the head with one mighty swing: “What are they going to do for us?”
We plan to keep hammering away at answering that question.