From Prospect to Evangelist
As a business coach and salon owner, every single time that a company or person brings me a challenge, the answer always comes back to their foundation of culture.
Culture is a sustainable environment for suitable growth. A lot of times, people look at the word “culture” and think it’s just a buzzword. They think “culture, culture, culture”, that’s all I need to have. However, they then forget about processes and procedures; they forget about their bottom line. Yet, those who are only focused on the bottom line say, “I don’t care about the culture, as long as I make money.”
If you forget about culture, your bottom line will be affected. If you only focus on the culture and you’re not aware of the processes and procedures that are happening within your company, you’ll find yourself abandoning the culture.
Kelly Cardenas Salon
So, how can you engage the right people for culture growth? It starts with identifying the types of people in your organization.
Prospects – They are a desired relationship: you hope it works out, but they are not locked-in. Though now employed, a prospect is still looking for a better situation than the one they are in. They are still on the prowl; still looking. These people aren’t just new hires. Some in your organization may have been working with you for several years but they act like a “prospect”; they don’t have confidence in the company.
Guests – They’ve experience your values at the core; they “like” it, but they don’t “love” it. A guest enjoys coming to work, they enjoy the culture, they’ve experienced some of the cool things, but they are not “sold” yet. These people may enjoy parts of your culture and enjoy what’s going on, but they are aware of other options. They haven’t believed in your values or they just don’t understand them. A guest just isn’t connected to why you are doing what you are doing. As the saying goes, “Commitment isn’t commitment until it is commitment.” These people have not yet committed.
Brand Ambassadors – This is where employees start to catch “on fire”. Brand Ambassadors are committed. They will talk about the company as long as they are asked. They are warming up. These people will do their job as long as they have reciprocation (financial, emotional); as long as they are getting what they expect, they will talk about the organization credibly. Once the perks go away, or people quit asking, brand ambassadors move on.
Brand Evangelists – These are the “holy grail” of people in your organization. All you need is one evangelist; but if you have more than one…jackpot! Brand evangelists use every opportunity to interject about your culture: at a BBQ, a park, get-togethers; these people are absolutely on fire! They want to talk about the culture; it’s personal. They interject their stories. They weave it in. You cannot separate them from the culture. Brand evangelists are always 2 degrees of separation from sharing about your culture; they will always turn conversations back to talking about the organization. These are your Viking warriors.
“Brand evangelists are always 2 degrees of separation from sharing about your culture; they will always turn conversations back to talking about the organization. ”
Before the Vikings would go to war, they would burn their own boats. This visual message communicated to the enemy that the Vikings were either going to win the battle, or die trying (that’s not people you want to fight). Without a boat, they can’t go home. If a person has the option to retreat, most will retreat. A brand ambassador “readies their ship,” in case they need to go back to where they came from. But a brand evangelist burns the ship. They are champions of the culture. Empower your brand evangelists!
We have a brand evangelist for the hair salon we own in Chicago. Prior to our opening, Brian went out into the city and talk about the salon at work, at the bar, telling everyone he met that they should visit our salon. He would not only call and make appointments for those he influenced, he would show up to the appointment and stand next to them to ensure they experienced the culture.
We all need a brand evangelist, like Brian, inside of our organizations. They help the culture flourish. When brand evangelists preach the gospel of your culture, you’ll see efficiencies start to happen. People take hold of the values and they own it. When the culture becomes a part of who they are, all bets are off. Now your company and your culture grow.
Three ways to help your employees to “grow”:
1. Respect who they are
2. Respect where they are right now
3. Respect where they can go
Once something stops growing, it starts dying. Culture is not something where you set a bunch of rules and that’s it: it evolves. It has a life of its own. The only way it can have a life of its own is if you have brand evangelists in your company. I invite you to look at each and every person inside your organization. Are they simply a prospect? Have they been inside your company for too long as simply a guest? Have you burned the boat? Or are they the holy grail?
Look for the holy grail. If you can’t find it in your company, become it.
Kelly Cardenas
KELLY CARDENAS is an industry icon, author, international educator for John Paul Mitchell Systems, Business Coach, Salon Owner, husband and Father. He attributes the success of his namesake salons, located in Las Vegas, Chicago, and Carlsbad, to the team that has been constructed around him. Cardenas’ concept of integrity based success has conditioned his team of trend-setting stylists to reach exponential heights as salons as well as individual beauty professionals.