Developing and Protecting Your Company Image as a Technology Leader The most important thing you can do as a company is ensure that you build and maintain a certain image. Your image as a technology company sticks in the back of consumer’s minds.
Image The mechanical arms of Droid make you think of a high-tech smart phone that competes with the iPhone. It also connotes a feeling, making you remember every positive or negative story you have ever heard about that product. These feelings create a belief of how you feel about the company as a whole. It works at such a deep level in you that you will make a decision to buy it based on that feeling, and not necessarily the functionality of the system. People are feeling creatures, and they will judge your technology on your image. It is vital that you create the right image, and then maintain it. Whatever image you decide to pursue, realize that you will have to create certain expectations of your employees to maintain that image. You can tell the world whatever you want about the company. You can tell them your technology is the best and the people working for you are the most customer friendly people around. If your employees don’t live up to those standards, then you will produce lower quality products and give substandard service, creating a bad image. Create an image, and then find a way to provide continual compliance training to ensure your image stays pure. Train your employees regularly on your belief system. Think of new ways to improve your implementation strategy and make sure that every employee catches the dream. Some great examples of companies that have figured this out include Google and Apple.
Solving Problems
The first believes in providing a fun, professional atmosphere that makes getting what you need a number one priority, but comes up with creative solutions to problems. They offer their employees twenty percent time to develop new ideas to solve problems existing on the internet. If employees have a new idea, they are encouraged to solve it. Google gives them the tools to get the job done. They believe in allowing creative innovation to solve any problem and have trained their employees to work a certain way to reflect that belief. Effective compliance training helps their company stay on the cutting edge of the internet world. Apple’s entire marketing strategy is centered on their image. They have created an expectation of innovative technology, combined with user-friendliness. Customers who buy one of their products are assured an awesome experience when they buy something. These two concepts are evident in every Mac store you will ever walk into. The store is arranged to give you the impression that you are stepping into a room full of technological wonders. Each display is designed to make you feel like you are seeing the cutting edge of technology. Not only are you seeing it, but you can reach out and touch it. Their employees are given compliance training to be “user-friendly.� They are trained to be polite, respectful and knowledgeable. The company gave them the right compliance training to understand every product, abide by every rule and act the way the company expects them to act. With such a firm grasp on what the company expects from each of them, the employees can easily reenact the image of the company. Find an image that works for you, then do what these two have done, create an experience based on your ideals. Photo credit: Jd Hancock, Manfrys