Preface
This is my first personal essay and a new addition to my blog platform. For this essay, I decided to write about my experiences in the entertainment industry, my feedback, review, the good, the bad and the ugly.
For the most part of my tenure in the entertainment industry, I was an employee, but for a short period, I held the titles of manager and co-owner. Nevertheless, I am not excluded from the issues, mistakes, practice and ideology discussed in this essay. This is a three-part essay, which includes three chapters. The essay starts with an introduction and a review on customer service in chapter 1, followed by chapter 2 which addresses marketing and the last chapter includes my final thoughts.
Disclaimer: Although I hold an objective stand, these are my personal views, opinions and experience of events that occurred many years ago. At present (today), the industry may have changed and may reflect differently.
CHAPTER 1 – Introduction & Customer Service
For many years I have worked in the entertainment industry including various sectors such as tourism and culture. Additionally, for a short period, I have held a shared ownership title for a small rural enterprise. The entertainment industry was very interesting and differed from region to region. However, the fundamentals remained the same.
My experience in the entertainment industry incorporated both small and large, rural and urban businesses. Each business had its characteristics, identity, image and brand positioning. The businesses that were larger in size and were considered “upscale” were located in the urban areas of the country and the ones that were considered small or had smaller capital were in rural regions. The urban and rural placement of these businesses created differences in popularity and market responses. For instance, urban located businesses had higher positive responses to popularity and market to that of rurally located businesses. This brings me to another important point and reasoning – Capital.
In my experience, capital within the industry was the main common distinct factor of each business venture. This affected many business-related factors, such as business size and marketing. Rural businesses are inclined to have less available capital, which meant limited space and less market presence as a result of a lack of marketing and or marketing related strategies. However, although business capital was very important, everyone believed that location mattered more so than capital within the industry. An ideal location, as it was understood, can yield better returns and turnover despite the business size and capital availability. It has been said that location is key, or it is? Is location more important than customer service and experience?
In general, customer service is important to businesses success and longevity. Unfortunately, customer service was one of the main downfalls in the entertainment industry. Firstly, customer service was never systematised; and secondly, employees never knew what their expectation of exceptional customer service was and how they were to deliver it. Everyone knew they had to provide some sort of customer service, they all had their ideas, but lack the right measure. This confusion and disruption thus led to the delivery of erratic, unstandardized and poor customer service.
Customer service and experience are tightly connected within the industry, that is why it is so important. Before going further, let me elaborate. Several owners and managers within the entertainment industry failed to realize that they were selling "experience" as appose to a product or service. For most of the consumers of the entertainment business, their purchase of the service being offered was driven mainly to achieve an "experience", and that experience is different or subjective to each consumer. Hence, the business objective of owners and managers in the entertainment industry is to create their consumer concept of "experience" through friendship, socialization, lifestyle, bliss, memories and the likes. However, for one to create their consumer concept of "experience", one must first understand the target market in which they serve. I will discuss this further in the second chapter of this personal essay.
Moreover, during my years in the industry, I have heard frequent consumer statements that alluded to me that consumers wanted to experience something different and exciting from their daily lives. For the majority, it was euphoria, bliss for many, and fun for some. Nonetheless, many entertainment businesses understood this, but very few capitalized on this notion through innovation and creativity of attractive events. Yet somehow many businesses still neglected the critical aspect of customer service and experience.
This ends chapter one of my personal essay. In chapter two, I will further briefly discuss the industry in the aspects of marketing.