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I lost it in Abercrombie. You know the store with all the pre-teen and adolescent clones walking around in Abercrombie-wear amidst loud music, low lights, and large, framed b & w photos of beautiful, perfectly diverse, Abercrombie-clad teens?  My experience changed their “brand image” for me forever. Which is why I’m writing about it, as every marketing person knows negative w-o-m travels 9 times farther than positive.

Really long story somewhat shorter, my 11-year old daughter’s $10 Abercrombie gift card was faulty. After 20 minutes of the machine not working, the PIN number not working, whatever line they called by phone not working, and my usually relatively calm demeanor disintegrating by the minute, I was handed back the card with an ”I’m sorry, there’s nothing we can do,” by a 19-year old Abercrombie clone.  I demanded to speak to the manager. To my horror, I was. She told me I needed to call Customer Service.

Livid, I left the store sputtering (now to my daughter’s horror), “WE WILL NEVER SHOP HERE AGAIN.”

So I called and was greeted by a “Brand Representative” (HA!), with whom I shared my plight. After trying this and that, he too said the dreaded words, “There’s nothing we can do.” Yes, I demanded to speak to HIS manager, and finally, after being put on hold for many minutes, my Brand Representative friend came back with a special PIN number we could use to redeem the gift card. Halleluiah! It only took an hour of my life.

Obviously, it wasn’t the 10 bucks that was eating me at this point - it was the principle.

How much does Abercrombie spend on advertising and brand identity development, only to have that invaluable brand integrity destroyed by inappropriate customer service? My problem should have been solved at the first experience touch point- the retail outlet.

This is called the brand experience and it’s a critical component of any brand. If we take this to the hospital level, there’s a new concept of a “Chief Experience Officer”, responsible for assuring a consistently positive brand experience throughout the entire organization. While superior clinical firsts and onlys are strong differentiators, if a patient has a bad experience with any touch point (i.e. valet parking, phlebotomist, kitchen service), the entire brand is tainted. Hospitals who are embracing this concept are identifying every interaction with every audience and working to exceed experiential expectations. And are thus creating a superior competitive advantage.

It all boils down to our emotions. We remember things by how they make us feel. No matter how much I dislike it, Abercrombie has succeeded in making my daughter feel cool if she wears their name plastered across her body.  So until she outgrows it, I’m gonna have to swallow my pride and go  back in there so my little clone can enjoy her brand experience.

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