In a matter of months, Netflix went from beloved to beaten up.

Netflix customers have long raved about how easy it is to use its streaming and DVD services, and business leaders view its operations as a great model of a customer-centric approach to operations. (A client of mine, for example, recently referrenced Netflix in describing how she needed me to help her design and create a new initiative for her organization.)

This summer, however, Netflix made a series of missteps and bungled decisions, surely with all the best of intentions, that some (about a million) customers disliked. Really disliked. OK. Hated. It increased its pricing by 60 percent, separated its streaming video from its DVD shipping services, and then, the final wallup, announced a whole separate company for the DVD services, under the much maligned name, Qwikster. However, on Monday, the company hit the rewind button (except for the pricing changes), killed Qwikster, and announced to customers:

Dear Gail:

It is clear that for many of our members two websites would make things more difficult, so we are going to keep Netflix as one place to go for streaming and DVDs.

This means no change: one website, one account, one password…in other words, no Qwikster.

While the July price change was necessary, we are now done with price changes.

We're constantly improving our streaming selection. We've recently added hundreds of movies from Paramount, Sony, Universal, Fox, Warner Bros., Lionsgate, MGM and Miramax. Plus, in the last couple of weeks alone, we've added over 3,500 TV episodes from ABC, NBC, FOX, CBS, USA, E!, Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, ABC Family, Discovery Channel, TLC, SyFy, A&E, History, and PBS.

We value you as a member, and we are committed to making Netflix the best place to get your movies & TV shows.

Respectfully,

The Netflix Team

Clunky, awkward, uncomfortable, and very public, Netflix attempted to expand its services in ways it thought it was being valuable to customers. And it backfired. However, their reversal means they can begin again, regain customer confidence, and move forward.

Though no business wants to make mistakes so publicly, the Netflix case study is actually a great example of what hundreds of CMOs and CEOs are saying is "crucial" to their successes in the 21st century: "customer intimacy." That's according to a new study by IBM.

"The most proactive CMOs are trying to understand individuals as well as markets. Customer intimacy is crucial – and CEOs know it. In our last CEO study, we learned CEOs regard getting closer to customers as one of the three prerequisities for success in the twenty-first century. This sits squarely in the CMO's domain."

--IBM's From Stretched to Strenthened: Insights from the Global Chief Marketing Officer Study

Yes, of course, these leaders surely aspire to smoother, even more pleasant feelings of intimacy than this, but let's not forget, sometimes intimacy can be messy. Netflix deserves a lot of credit for putting its collective ego aside and responding to what its customers are saying. Er, screaming.

Let's also not forget another leader who encountered a similar situation: Steve Jobs and Apple. When the second iteration of the iPhone came out, customers who had most recently bought the first version received a $100 store credit for being early adopters of the new technology that had dropped in price by half. Mr. Jobs issued an open apology and made the correction.

Intimacy requires an openness, receptivity, back and forth. And this openness is a requirement that all businesses – even nonprofits – must grow more comfortable with. Its an exchange that corporate sponsorship is an ideal medium for fostering.

In contrast, intimacy is not about rebuffing customers. Unfortunately, that's what I read in a quote by a spokesperson for a breast cancer organization in an AP article this morning about whether painting October pink, in support of breast cancer awareness month, had run its course. I (and others) have been saying that it has for years. But more importantly some women who have battled breast cancer hate the reminder. One woman in the article is quoted as saying the pink "drives her nuts." Yet the organizational spokesperson remains, "unapologetic." Not exactly openness.

The shifts we're facing in how we market to customers affects all of us. Learn from the Netflix and Apple examples. Foster a sense of openness and dialogue with your communities. And if you goof, respond. Don't rebuff.

Author of How to Jump-start Your Sponsorship Strategy in Tough Times,Gail Bower is President of Bower & Co. Consulting LLC, a firm helps that nonprofit organizations, destinations, and businesses dramatically improve their visibility, revenue, and impact. She’s a professional consultant, writer, and speaker, with nearly 25 years of experience managing some of the country’s most important events, festivals, and sponsorships and implementing marketing programs for clients She blogs about sponsorship at SponsorshipStrategist.com, and her web site is GailBower.com.

We’re about to buy a minivan.  Ugh.  For various reasons finally decided it was probably the smartest decision for our family; clearly the practical side of me is winning out over image.  Or so I thought… We have test driven a couple of different models now, and the first experience was about what I expected it to be.  I left feeling very dutiful, informed, and let out a lengthy sigh over the “wheeling and dealing” process I knew was imminent before we could sign the papers and lug the thing home.  And then we went to our second car dealership and test drove the Toyota Sienna.  I’ll be honest, I’ve never owned a Toyota, but they’re currently in first place with me right now.  Their sales team was on fire.  We walked in rather late – they’d all be off in about half an hour.  My son was a bit tired and restless, and instead of being frustrated with our little distraction to their sales pitch, one of their staff came over to us with a big balloon and asked if it was OK with us for him to have it.  Uh… yes!!!  Their facility was impeccable.  Even the décor on the walls seemed to calm me, seduce me into “let’s do this” mode.  And then we saw the car.  I will tell you now that I’m in no way gaining from this promotion, but I have to say, I was really impressed.  These people know how to make you feel luxurious in a minivan.  So not only am I a practical driver, I’m VIP baby!  Now, I know that buying a car is way more than your experience; you have to get a good product, but I’d be lying if I said they didn’t make a really good impression.  And their marketing really resonates – they’ve really got their target audience down.  They’re not marketing the same way the Mercedes folks are; it’s sort of realistic in a funny way - hillarous videos (at least to you parents out there). I went to their website to look up the van and saw the “Daddy Like” slogan next to the vehicle which really did make me smile.  I liked their brand before I ever walked into the dealership.

Now, I’ve been talking for a long time about a car. About an experience that would seem to be really far from sponsorship.  But here’s the deal – Identifying with your target audience and impacting their experience with you is NOT rocket science.  You see it all over the world of sales, and you’d be out of touch with reality if you didn’t admit that an experience sets a mood.  You form typically strong opinions on brands, people, products, places, airlines, restaurants… the list goes on; based on your experience with them!  My Grandmother made a shrimp casserole for us when I was about 8 years old.  I hated it.  I told her… mistake.  I was told I had to eat it or no dessert – and it was a really good dessert.  I did the best I could; and despite my efforts, I ended up throwing it all up.  Yep, it was not a good experience.  I grew up assuming I hated shrimp, and never tried it again until I was on a date with my now husband; who was sort of a food snob and assured me EVERYONE liked good shrimp.  Turns out, he was right – it’s amazing.  But I had such a bad experience with it the first time; I lost a good 15 years or so of enjoying it.  This leads me to my next point – experience impacting is also important because it leaves a lasting impression.  Practically speaking we know that a lot of variables can affect our take on an experience, but our emotions tell us differently.  We have so many options for a good time, that if one experience doesn’t work, we won’t likely try it a second time.  So when as a sponsorship professional, you’re trying to impact an experience at say a program or event, you need to do a really good job – or your target audience WILL go somewhere else to do better. 

So, keep in mind, this is not a new thought – but it may be a new priority.   If your number one goal as a sponsor is not to impact your audience’s experience, you might consider changing your perspective on a successful effort/investment. 

Selling sponsorship can be tough. Like the 1978 voiceover intro on ESPN’s predecessor, ABC’s Wide World of Sports, used to say about sports, selling involves both “the thrill of victory, and the agony of defeat.”

 On particularly down days, it’s easy to feel powerless, as if you have very little control over the fates of your sales. But if you put yourself in the shoes of a buyer – through your imagination or the actual pathways of your career – you’ll quickly reconsider that notion.

 Early in my career in corporate sponsorship, mostly on the selling side, I had the opportunity to represent a major consumer product, a beverage and at the time, believe it or not, a new category – bottled water. (Yes, there was a time when we just drank the stuff right out of the tap, from a glass.)

 A company I worked with was engaged to secure outdoor event sponsorship opportunities for a major bottled water brand. To me it was a dream job. I couldn’t believe someone was going to pay me to sit at the other side of the table.

 I imagined that I’d easily identify a bunch of events that met the criteria we’d established with the brand, give ‘em a call, and hook things up.

 I was completely delusional!

 In reality it was one of the toughest, most frustrating projects I ever worked on. And one of the most educational.

 Why? At least half of my calls went unreturned. When I actually spoke with people on the phone, few:

• could clearly articulate the value of their sponsorship programs,
• could describe how the brand I represented might be involved, and
• got back to me with compelling ideas and proposals.

More than once I recall hanging up the phone from another of these conversations, wondering if I were in some parallel universe. I had cash, and I was ready to spend it. Why didn’t these events have an operation and staff ready to sell to me?

 And that’s where the learning came in. As the seller and the representative to the corporate sector of your event or festival, you have an important job. You are the guide, trusted advisor, confidante, and liaison to your corporate client. Your role, from the first time you meet through the years of your partnership and collaboration, is to assist your partner in achieving success in their sponsorship of your event.

 They don’t know how things work, who your audiences are, what all the opportunities are, what would be the best fit given their goals. They need your assistance.

 Sponsors don’t exist just to write checks to your organization. They have outcomes to achieve, benchmarks to hit, brand images to uphold, bosses and stakeholders to please, etc. Similarly you don’t have time to waste. You have opportunities to be sold and, let’s face it, thrilling victories to be celebrated.

 While you cannot control the sales situation 100 percent, here are five areas you can control.

1. Be professional. Be prepared for meetings and calls. Be responsive. Communicate proactively. Comport yourself professionally.
2. Have an operation to support sponsorship. The culture in your organization must revolve, to a certain degree, around serving corporate clients. Saying you want corporate partners and then snickering behind closed doors at how much money you’re going to get from them (aka “The Ask”) doesn’t exactly demonstrate exemplary partner behavior. Neither does the harangue of production staff for sponsor swag. Have enough staff, good policies and procedures, and an excellent strategy for all aspects of your operation, including the relationship you aim to have with sponsors.
3. Articulate the value of your sponsorship opportunity. It all starts here. If you don’t know the value of your sponsorship program, how can you expect your sponsor to know? If you wonder why corporations have constructed electronic fencing, in the form of online applications, it’s because countless sponsorship sellers cannot describe the value of their programs and fail to research.
4. Ask good questions. Be curious about your sponsor’s goals, interests, strategies, and product line. Invest the time at the beginning of your relationship to learn everything you can. Don’t stop asking questions throughout your relationship so you’re current.
5. Be trustworthy and deliver. Don’t make promises you can’t keep. Don’t lie about who comes to your event, what you know or don’t know about your audiences. Don’t cover up landmines. Sponsors will find out, and it will be uglier and more damaging to your credibility – as a professional and an organization. Do what you say you’re going to do – all the time. Have your clients’ best interests at heart. Don’t gossip. Maintain confidentiality about your sponsors’ business details.

May these 5 suggestions minimize agonizing defeats and increase your victories.

© 2011 Gail S. Bower All rights reserved.

Author of How to Jump-start Your Sponsorship Strategy in Tough Times,Gail Bower is President of Bower & Co. Consulting LLC, a firm helps that nonprofit organizations, destinations, and businesses dramatically improve their visibility, revenue, and impact. She’s a professional consultant, writer, and speaker, with nearly 25 years of experience managing some of the country’s most important events, festivals, and sponsorships and implementing marketing programs for clients She blogs about sponsorship at SponsorshipStrategist.com, and her web site is GailBower.com.