Let’s be really honest with each other.
We’re in a transactional relationship right now.
We’ve hopefully got something that you want, and, naturally, we want something in return for it.
That’s kind of how it works in the world of commerce.
Maybe you just want to purchase something from us and move on, no fuss or rigmarole.
Perhaps you are fed up of brands and companies hounding you with their thinly veiled sales emails and offers.
I know I am.
I just did a total cleanse of pretty much every company that invades my inbox, and I felt tons better for having done so.
But, there were a few brands that I had to stick with, and I continue to happily receive their emails weekly, sometimes twice-weekly.
The difference between those companies and the ones I discarded? They treat me like a human being not a potential customer.
They talk to me straight, and they seem to know what kind of things I think about and talk about.
I can tell there is a human behind the keyboard, someone who cares about what they do and the company they work for. And, whether it’s true or not, I feel like they genuinely care about me.
Sometimes their contact doesn’t have great relevance to me at that particular moment, but nevertheless it stops me in my tracks and for a few minutes I connect with them, that human on the other end of the keyboard, and we share a moment together.
In that moment we both stop the busyness of our lives and honour one another. Without saying it we say ‘Hey, I see you. I recognise you. Isn’t this human experience we are both sharing pretty crazy?’
All that in a blog post or a newsletter from a denim company? How is that even possible?
It’s the human touch.
Authenticity.
Honesty.
It’s bucking the trend of what is ‘supposed to be done’ in business and commerce, where the general ethic is sell, sell, sell, more, more, more.
Those brands that dare to be honest and vulnerable are leading the way for the future.
They are zigging where others zag.
They are showing us that making transactions doesn’t have to be a cold and dirty business.
We can be real.
We can be human too.
I can only aspire for our brand to reach that level of connection with the people who find us.
But to reach that goal we must show up each day and remind ourselves constantly to be honest, to be vulnerable, to be human.
