Posts from — July 2007

We’d just passed a small lifeboat station on the Pembrokeshire coastal path, when, slip, slide, crack, my ankle broke. Sheer denial of the truth, meant I waived a rescue helicopter flight - I could still hobble - so I did, back to civilization: although a couple of passing walkers kindly offered to carry me. However, I thought that might do them more harm than I’d already suffered ;-))

An operation later, here I am in plaster, immobile for six weeks, learning an enormous amount about being a disabled customer.

All of a sudden a shop step is an assault course, whilst standing at the top of a flight of restaurant steps is akin to daring to take a bungee jump. The station seats are behind a swing door I cannot push whilst balancing on crutches, and wheelchairs are upset by slopes, gravel and any number of small ground imperfections.

I’m learning which organizations provide wheelchairs - the National Trust and some supermarkets are very good; who has thought about stair lifts, and wide retail spaces for manoeuvring; and who will change their processes to accommodate a disability - when I called the Albert Hall to cancel my Proms tickets they asked if I could bring them in in person to get a refund; BBC policy !!!!! But I cannot walk that’s why I’m cancelling!!!

But the greatest fun is the social side, men seem fascinated by a leg in plaster, and invariable stop me in the street to ask about it - empathising with a wince. Women are not nearly so interested in the physical, but do recognize the need for help with shopping and getting lots of rest.

I hadn’t planned this research, but now I’m here I’ll put it to good use for our customer experience training.

In the past few years we have worked in places as diverse as China, South Africa, and the UK. Our assignments have been with a range of companies, from not-for-profit to large multi-nationals, in a variety of industries. Thus, we help with the cross-fertilisation of ideas that leads to innovation.

Our clients include:-

Birmingham City Council British Telecom Camelot Carlson Marketing Clarity Blue CPM International De Montfort University Department of Trade and Industry Dow Jones Experian Gartner Greater China CRM HSBC IBM Inforte Business Consulting Institute of Direct Marketing Leeds City Council marcusevans (South Africa, Singapore) Microsoft National Association of Adult Placement Services Netsuite OgilvyOne Worldwide Ordnance Survey Peppers & Rogers Group Portrait Software Respond Software Sift Media SAS Software Yorkshire Forward Yorkshire Water (Loop) Technorati Tags: business clients

General Enquiries - info@mutualmarketing.co.uk

Jennifer Kirkby
Managing Director
2 The Sycamores, Guiseley, Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK, LS20 9EN
+44 (0)1943 878046 - jennifer.kirkby@mutualmarketing.co.uk

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One of the most important contributors to success in personal and business life is the ability to communicate effectively. Communication is about delivering a message to another and we assume that the recipient has a perfect understanding of all the nuances and meanings of our messages. However, often meaning get lost in translation; re-coded and re-interpreted.An area of interest currently is the study of emotional intelligence or EQ as a vital element of any leader. One of the key strands of EQ is the ability to tune into other’s people’s emotional state and with that understand how to communicate with them.

This skill is a rare one indeed battling with the natural ego; ourselves at the centre of our concern. However, the skill is brilliantly illustrated with the practice of Horse Whispering.

Monty Roberts is often called, ‘The Man who talks to horses’. His father broke horses in the traditional way through discipline and often force. Monty practices an entirely different approach where he tunes in to the communication signals of the horse and communicates in the same language. The results of his approach are amazing.

Wild horses enter the training arena; half an hour later, there is a palpable trust between the animals and Monty. You can see the ongoing, non-verbal communication improving the relationship minute by minute.

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