Authenticity is an attribute that cannot be fabricated or mandated by management. You can’t fool customers into believing your proposition is authentic through ubiquitous marketing. It is or it isn’t. Authenticity is not veneer.
A few months back, a young couple opened a pizza joint a couple of blocks from our office. Every day I notice this little joint is always packed! Why? It’s actually not in a great location. The food, though good, is not that special. The prices are not extraordinarily cheap, and they started their little business in the worst economy in a lifetime.
Why are they thriving when other restaurants around them are struggling to stay afloat? Why is this business immune from the unfavorable circumstances that surround it? The answer is simple. It’s the real deal. They provide every customer with an authentic experience of love, fellowship and comfort over a simple meal. The value is in the authentic customer experience, not the meal. Pizza joints are as commoditized as a business can possibly be, and yet, this one thrives! I repeat, value creation begins and ends in an authentic customer experience.
Authenticity demands your behavior as an enterprise lines up with your value proposition to customers. Authenticity is yours to lose.
Home Depot is a great example. When Home Depot promised customers “you can do it, we can help” then did away with the experienced, retired tradesman salespeople in favor of cheaper inexperienced labor to save money. Customers knew the claim was bullshit and the results to Home Depot were disastrous. Customers can smell deception a mile away. You can’t fool customers ever. Authenticity and value creation are not mutually exclusive. You can’t have one with out the presence of the other. Authenticity matters more than money.
