First, an apology – because I should have done this last week!
At the end of my last post about June’s ‘Get PodSavvy’, I promised to give you some background to the interview with Ivan Newman of Living Inside The Brand. Ivan starts his series of the same name, on customer service, in this month’s show (which we’re currently putting together) and his segment is one of three from the programme which will be made available as an ‘enhanced podcast’ – audio illustrated with images.
We’d only met a couple of times when he approached me with the idea for the feature. The meeting that followed turned into a mad creative brain-storming session – around pictures, rather than sound. As a guide dog owner with shadow vision, I don’t often get the chance to let my very visual imagination off the leash – but Ivan let me do just that.
By the time we parted company, we had a whole set of images (which I won’t describe here, because you may well see some of them over the next few months) and a rough outline of six programmes setting out the core principles of excellent customer service.
As we worked up those rough ideas into a detailed plan, I realised very quickly that as far as Ivan is concerned, it’s definitely a case of ‘Do as I do – not as I say!’ – even when he’s the customer! He practices what he preaches all the way – especially when it comes to looking after the small details, laying the right foundations and keeping the lines of communication open. We’re both keen to make sure the final product is the best it can possibly be – which is why, even though he’s away in the alps at the moment being terribly athletic, the emails and calls are still flying backwards and forwards.
I’m really looking forward to seeing all our efforts come together when I’m back in the studio on Thursday afternoon.