Quick question...
Who makes your Mee siam?
There are 2 food places near my home that sell Mee siam.
One’s 300 meters away and the other, 1.2km away.
The one closer to my place has hardworking staff. They’re quick. They work fast and they follow a system.
I seldom have to wait more than 5 minutes to get a bowl of Mee siam.
But while there’s nothing wrong with their service, you can tell that they don’t enjoy what they’re doing.
There’s never a smile on their faces and they make no attempt to interact with their customers.
The other place, the one that’s further from my home, is a little different.
There are only 3 people operating. They’re slower and there’s usually a queue.
The main person who makes the Mee siam is an aged man I fondly call Uncle Tan.
When Uncle Tan takes your order, there’s a sparkle in his eyes, a warmth in his smile, a genuineness in his words.
He remembers that I don’t like beansprouts and we’ll often chat about his gardening hobby.
As I take my Mee siam, he would always remind me to carry it carefully.
Uncle Tan goes the extra mile.
You see, even though there’s another option closer to my place, I find myself going back to Uncle Tan every time I crave for a bowl of Mee siam.
Because of who he is as a person.
Uncle Tan is not in the food business.
He’s in the people business.
In fact, every business person is actually in the people business.
It’s people who choose to buy from people.
It’s people who choose to do business with people.
And they always choose people whom they know, like and trust.
Once you connect with your audience, you’ll know exactly what they want and you’ll know how to speak their language.
This is the bedrock of every good business.
It is also the first thing I go back to when I create winning ads and the first thing I teach marketers.
How to understand your audience and speak their language.
This is how we win in the business we’re in - the people business.
If you’d like to witness just how much this idea can affect your business too, let’s get in touch.
Let’s connect.
Maybe even over a bowl of Uncle Tan’s Mee siam:)
