Two Big Wins for Seattle Sports. Listen to your customers and look to the future.
The big news for Seattle sports fans a few weeks ago was the unveiling of the new NHL team name logo and uniforms. From a marketing perspective, there was only one good choice, and the team made it with Kraken. The Kraken marketing team did their due diligence and listened to their fans in website voting, 50+ fan forums and over 12 months of social media listening. In hindsight, this research leads to what seems to be an obvious decision, but as anyone who has faced a big group decision knows, it’s not that simple.
Some opinions and voices are louder and more influential than others, and many times these opinions don’t align with the customer. History obsessed sports fans (the old school sportswriter type) pushed for naming the team the Metropolitans as a tribute to Seattle’s professional hockey team from the early 20th century. Pedantic and literal-minded sports fans (thankfully there aren’t too many and they’re mostly baseball fans) preferred Sockeye or Steelhead, names of actual fish that you can catch around Seattle. They argued that Kraken is a silly name with no genuine connection to the Northwest. Of course as an imaginary creature, it has no genuine connection anywhere. But that argument is lost on those who struggle to see past their own lofty opinions.
Car dealerships face similar decisions all the time, albeit on a smaller scale, when they think about trying something new instead of clinging to tradition and “the way we’ve always done it”. Whether this is in adverting strategy, creative, or the customer experience, it is challenging to speak up against strong voices that advocate for the status quo. The right decision is almost always what’s best for the customer and the easiest way to figure that out is to listen.
Another bold decision made by the team and their sponsor Amazon.com was to name the venue Climate Pledge Arena. This move not only breaks from tradition, it establishes a unique brand positioning that will be a significant competitive advantage over other venues. Amazon.com definitely doesn’t need more brand awareness, and their retail dominance has reached a level where its logo on an arena may produce negative sentiment for some fans. Climate Pledge Arena, however is more than a name, it’s an action plan that will define a unique fan experience. With a commitment to using 100% renewable energy and eliminating all plastic waste by 2024, the arena will be recognized as a pioneer that’s aligned with future generations. This strategy also gives Climate Pledge Arena a huge advantage in attracting artists that won’t perform in eco-unfriendly venues. This growing list includes Coldplay, Billie Eilish, Lana Del Ray and many others. I have no doubt that future arenas will need to copy this strategy to compete for artists, and many will develop unique innovations of their own that surpass the Climate Pledge Area, but by moving first and fully committing, Climate Pledge Arena will always be considered the leader.
To thrive in the future, dealerships need to make bold decisions like Amazon and the Seattle Kraken. The easiest decisions are those where consumer preferences are clear. For years auto shoppers have hated many steps in the traditional car buying process. The trade-in evaluation process, being passed around to several sales people and managers, the lengthy finance and insurance (F&I) process, and waiting to begin the lengthy F&I process are all consistent customer pain points that can be easily changed to align with customer preferences. Streamlining the F&I process, or eliminating it altogether, would not only improve the customer experience, but would be an opportunity for dealerships to reduce costs and elevate other positions both in terms of responsibility and compensation. The trade-in process can be improved by giving customers more control. Digital retailing applications allow customers to complete the bulk of this process at home on their own. Some customers will be more flexible on trade valuations after scrutinizing their own vehicle, for others the very fact that they have been invited to actively participate in a transparent process will improve trust and communication throughout the sale.
Other decisions are unclear and require dealerships to make calculated risks and commit resources to products and processes that won’t be overnight successes. Electric vehicles are a good example. The added cost of equipment, facilities and training won’t pay off immediately for dealerships as the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs, i.e. factories) launch their initial electric models. However, dealerships that fully commit and deliver a great customer experience to early electric adopters will win over influential customers and will be positioned to outperform their competitors as consumer adoption grows.