The feel-good factor

In my daily work, I would sometimes encounter people with whom I immediately have an instant connection. It’s hard to explain really. It’s beyond similarity of circumstances or commonality of likes and dislikes. I call it "jive of the vibes." It’s being able to relate to someone on a totally different plane. It’s having that inexplicable feel-good feeling about a certain person.

One such person with whom I have this unique feel-good connection is Volvo Philippines president Albert Arcilla. In the beginning, I couldn’t really say I had a solid connection with Albert. We weren’t childhood buddies. He went to a different high school. We actually just met fairly recently – around seven years ago when he worked for Vintage Enterprises, and I was with IMG, a co-marketing partner of Vintage. But when we did meet, we instantly connected. Initially, the connection was brought about by the commonalities that we shared. For starters, we’re both lawyers. We both graduated from Ateneo. Both of us are not actively practicing law (that is, going to court and defending clients). However, both of us do use our legal knowledge, discipline, and skills in our respective jobs. Albert said, "When two people in the company have a disagreement, I ask for both parties to air their respective side. Then, I act like a judge and decide what to do with the dispute. So it’s pretty much like law practice around here." I told him I couldn’t agree more. I sometimes find myself doing the same thing at work. Both of us are "lawyers of life" and our legal practice is not limited to the context of a law firm or the court room.

We didn’t really work that long together. He left Vintage Enterprises and I left IMG shortly after. For the next five or six years, Albert and I didn’t see each other. But one day, I was caught by surprise when I got an e-mail from him. He was reacting to a column of mine wherein I paid tribute to my father-in-law who had just passed away. Albert said in his e-mail that he was moved by my article because he knew my father-in-law. He related that when he was in Grade 7, he was part of this La Salle contingent who went to Bacolod. And during their stay there, they were "adopted" by a certain Nicolas Ledesma whom he remembered as very kind and fatherly. "He even gave us allowance," recalled Albert. However, he told me that since it was a long time ago, he wasn’t sure if the man I referred to as my father-in-law was the same Nicolas Ledesma he lived with. I responded to Albert’s e-mail by telling him that I had no doubt that the guy who adopted him was indeed my dad-in-law. "The fact that he gave you an allowance even if he didn’t have to is the tell-tale sign. His reputation for generosity was his identifying mark," I wrote Albert.

With that e-mail exchange, Albert and I continued to keep in touch. Eventually, we got together for a lunch meeting. The connection was instantaneous. It was as if there was no six-year gap. And there was this immediate feel-good atmosphere in the air. Albert has this gift of making people feel comfortable and good about themselves. The first thing he said was he loved the channel I worked for. He said, "I love MTV. It makes me feel good watching it. It seems like it’s so much fun." I just smiled and replied, "Well, I like Volvo. If I owned one, I would certainly feel good." We laughed heartily.

I asked Albert how business was and when he started talking, I soon realized why this man has been at the helm of one of the most successful auto brands in the world for quite some time. His entire business philosophy for Volvo revolved around his very own personal philosophy: Make people feel good.

I asked Albert where he felt the luxury car industry would be in the next couple of years. "You know what, Rod," he said with a grin, "the funny thing is Volvo’s not a luxury car with a luxury price. But most people think it is."

Albert said he’s not in the business of selling luxury cars. He’s in the feel-good business. And the feel-good aspect comes from providing premier cars which are built on the value of good design, safety, and ownership experience. "If you check out our prices, we’re not that expensive." It’s true. The price of an S40 is only P1.9 million. Okay, I know that for a lot people, P1.9 million is definitely a luxury. True. But if you compare this price with other brands of the same class and origin (European), this price ain’t so bad. Moreover, if you check out prices of top-level Japanese cars, their prices are almost in that range.

"You know what’s really odd?" Albert asked me. "In Europe, Volvos are considered everyday, family cars. It’s not an eye-opener if you own a Volvo in Europe. It’s a standard car. But the reason why it has a luxury image here is that it has a premium quality attached to it. We sell values hinged on quality and priority functions that highlight safety. When you ride a Volvo, you feel safe and secure. You feel like riding a vehicle that hasn’t compromised on anything. So, ultimately, what we’re selling is that unquantifiable feel-good feeling. Somehow, you just feel good riding a Volvo. And you derive that good feeling from everything – from the image, the feel, the ride, the look. All of those factors make the passenger feel good.

I know this sounds corny but when I left Albert’s office, I felt good. I wanted to get myself a Volvo right that very minute.

What I learned from my meeting with Albert is this: In business, your ultimate objective is to make people feel good. It’s not about simply providing a product or service. With so much competition out there, you have to go beyond your product and service and ask yourself what you want your customers to feel after they have tried your product and service.

Just check out gasoline stations now. They’re sparkling clean now and they have everything – shops, restaurants, and clean bathrooms. Once upon a time, gasoline stations were dirty, oily, and stinky places, gas boys looked like they’d just slept under a car and there was absolutely no way anyone could survive for 30 seconds inside a gas-station bathroom. Before, gasoline stations were simply a place to gas up. Not anymore. Look at gasoline stations now. You can almost lick the floor. They now have Starbucks, for crying out loud. People now hang out in gas stations. Why? Because one brilliant person thought of the idea that if you make a gas station provide a feel-good atmosphere, people will gas up there instead of a stinky, oily station. And it worked.

In your business as well as in your personal life, always bear in mind that oh-so-important feel-good factor. What would make your customers or clients feel good? Think about it and think about it hard. Don’t concentrate so much on simply adding product features or service enhancements. Any product development or service upgrading may improve the product or service that you offer. But it may not necessarily make the customers feel better about your product or about themselves. At the end of the day, all your improvements may not work out in your favor.

Whether you’re nurturing a friendship, or selling a product or service, always remember the feel-good factor. If you make other people feel good, the same feeling will boomerang right back to you many times over.

After all, with all the things that are happening around, we could certainly use a little dose of that feel-good feeling.

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Thanks for your letters! You may e-mail me at rodnepo@yahoo.com.