A Sense of Intimacy

I’m reading a book called “Small Giants”. As it states on the cover, it’s about “companies that choose to be great instead of big”.

One of the concepts that the companies highlighted in the book have in common is “a culture of intimacy”. Intimacy with employees, suppliers, community, and customers.

For Snoloha, there are two customer bases that are important to achieve this sense of intimacy with – retailers and the end-users. I hate that word “end-users”. I only use it to differentiate between the two types of customers.

Well, with the retailers, I can hop in my Jeep and make a road trip to meet with them, I can give them a ring, and I can shoot them an email. I know exactly who they are. I can make a very conscious and targeted effort to let them know I appreciate their business and support. And I can be sure they know they have my support.

However, the customers that are buying from the retailers, or from the website, are a bit more difficult to create that sense of intimacy with. I don’t know who all of them are. Hopefully connecting with the brand and what it stands for is a good start.

While at one of my favorite local eateries over the weekend, a friend pointed out a fellow patron wearing a Snoloha hat. How Cool! I stopped by her table to shake her hand and thank her for the business and the support. A sense of intimacy, indeed.

Then on the short walk home, we encountered a guy peddling by wearing a Snoloha visor. I stopped him, introduced myself, and thanked him for the business and the support. Another moment of intimacy.

It felt really, really good to be able to personally thank Snoloha customers for their support. It would be great to be able to meet them all, but I know it’s simply not possible. But little by little, and encounter by encounter, hopefully our customers will feel that sense of intimacy with the brand and the company. After all, the reason I started Snoloha wasn’t just to peddle t-shirts, it was to build a brand, a community, and to give-back and make a difference in this crazy world.

Again, it was Henry Ford who said, “A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business.”