Groundswell - the grand finale

          I was pleasantly surprised and, dare I say it, inspired by the final couple of chapters in Groundswell. Chapter 11 which focuses on how to use the groundswell inside your own company was a wonderful final addition to the book; I had always wondered why the employees at Best Buy were always so upbeat and eager to help me whenever I went into the store (and I’ve been in several all across the northeast) and now I understand – they like their jobs. The quote from one of Best Buy’s managers at the very beginning of the chapter was the perfect lead-in:

“I work retail. I inspire creativity and fun with my employees. I grand open stores, as many as possible, really. And I have never before loved a job and a company the way I love this one. My name is Ashley Hemsath, and I am Best Buy.” (p. 215)

          Given the current economic climate I think this chapter is even more important. Now that so many companies have cut spending and salaries and employees, those who are still left working are often faced with lower pay for more work. The examples in this chapter were a great reminder to the higher echelons of corporations that mistreating your employees is not the way to be successful in the long-term. Creating appropriate methods of connection between internal hierarchies is extremely important, as demonstrated clearly by Li and Bernoff. How many electronics stores have closed down over the past decade? (Check out this Wikipedia page if you aren’t convinced). I had no idea how Best Buy was remaining so successful, and I honestly think most of it is its phenomenal customer service. It offers the same products as every other tech store, but with a full staff that is eager to help anyone who wanders in, from the uber tech-wiz to the confused grandmother. Within the first few minutes of being in the store a representative has almost always asked me if I need help with anything, and if I don’t, they back off immediately and don’t bother me. It’s a surprisingly peaceful and relaxing shopping experience.

          To top Chapter 11, Chapter 12 was even more enjoyable and I thought perfectly summed up the lessons taught in previous chapters. My favorite comment is near the end of the chapter and summarizes what, in my opinion at least, is the most important message of the entire book:

“In this world of constant feedback, one element of some corporate cultures is definitely going away. Strategies based on deception are doomed to failure. If your high-speed Internet offering is slower in real like than your competitors’, skeptics will point a finger at the stream of online reviews and discussion groups, and people will know. If your new mop looks great and costs less but the refills are expensive, people will know. If your mortgage company underestimates how long the paperwork takes, people will know.” (p. 239)

a Dell laptop that caught fire (there were several apparently...)

For me at least, this was the most crucial message that the book discusses – as a result of social media, companies have to be better. They can no longer lie about their products or services, they can’t have prolonged periods of terrible customer service, and they can’t treat their employees any way they want and expect positive results. I loved that this was such a huge focus of the book – it forces anyone who takes the time to read it to realize that it’s not just marketing strategy that needs to change, it’s business policies and practices too.

even Walmart, one of the most profitable companies in the country has been affected  by the groundswell and forced into making changes that never would have happened without it.

          But the cherry on top for me was way at the back of the entire text, past the notes and index sections. The very last section in the book is titled “join the conversation” in which the authors take their own advice and offer an additional service to the book itself. They very appropriately say that “a book is a one way communication” and they came up with a way to make it two-way (or a thousand-way I suppose). They created a place for people reading this book and those interested in moving their companies forward with the ideas included have a place to support each other at groundswell.forrester.com. I loved this idea and really made the book feel complete to me – however the site no longer exists for whatever reason, I was only able to find forrester.com and they have separate blogs on the same issues, but nothing so specific and (in my opinion) as beneficial as what Li and Bernoff had suggested. The attempt could have failed for a number of reasons and was eventually taken down as a result, but it is a shame that it is no longer available to further this valuable discussion and ease the process for those who are trying to improve their companies and prepare them for the opportunities presented by the groundswell.