The Vision of Emotion

The Vision of Emotion

Not so long ago, the Promoter was advised ‘to bury’ the Je Suis Personality (JSP) Vision and Mission statements within the deeper recesses of the website. ‘Who actually reads the company vision and mission statements, anyhow?’ In this era of skimming rather than reading, of images rather than wording, the Promoter could certainly see the point being made. People are busy, right?

‘The aim of JSP is to create a global company focussed on personalisation marketing that keeps the consumer at the heart of the retail universe…’ Blah, blah, blah. In truth, this statement is as inspiring as boiling the kettle, tying shoelaces, brushing one’s teeth. It lacks any sort of inspiration. It’s run of the mill, Plain Jane, jargon. The JSP mission statement is no better. Both statements, presently, lack the ingredient of emotion: of feeling, of needing, of believing. They were written prior to official launch of the JSP website (there have been some minor adjustments since, but nothing significant), prior to ‘experiencing’ the Personal-a-Teas concept.

You see, it’s not about the ‘What we do’ or the ‘How we do it’ …it’s about the ‘Why we do it’. The statements above are indeed the ‘what’ and the ‘how’. However, it’s not clear – the ‘why?’

In order to understand the ‘why we do what we do’, it’s important to understand a little about: the background and motivations of the Promoter, the initial idea behind Personal-a-Teas, the art and the experience of gifting.

So, what was the origin for Je Suis Personality and Personal-a-Teas?

This Promoter has always operated within the disruptive (technology) start-up environment. Such companies are the brave, ‘the crazies’, the pioneers: they operate on a knife edge. Many are doomed to fail. Very few disruptives survive. There is no safety net. No two days are the same. Work days are structured, weekly goals and targets are established. There is also opportunity to experiment, create and discover. Working within this environment is exhilarating. Therefore, it only seemed a natural progression that the Promoter would choose to ‘create his own path’ once liquidation saw to the end of the second venture.

Through the creative process, ideas came and went. (Some may yet be explored again in the future. As Stephen King once said about the creative writing process, ‘the good ideas seem to hang around’).

The concept for Personal-a-Teas evolved from the ‘pain’ of continually asking regular guests to our humble abode, ‘so, how do you like your tea / coffee, again?’ The guests in question may have visited the week previous. Honestly. Something needed to be done!

The ‘what if’ was explored and developed. Over time the idea-acorn grew and grew. As a personable character himself, the Promoter loves the concept of gaining glimpses into someone’s personality through how they interact with certain products and services – even when engaging in sporting and fun activities.

‘What does your tea / coffee say about you?’ This idea seemed to have an interesting hook. It certainly wasn’t a new concept, (lead generation websites have seen to this) and so the Promoter continued to develop the idea into what we have today: a pioneering customer success program configured through the consumer’s personality. At its core is uplifting social interaction, creativity and tangible rewards.

The Promoter’s mother loved the ethos of giving. She worked hard throughout her life and her passion was thinking of others. It really was. She never forgot someone’s birthday. She was gregarious and out-going and she loved to show she was thinking of you. Exhibiting this through the medium of gifting. She was a wonderful woman, and often (unintentionally, of course) she would give a gift which was a little ‘wide of the mark!’ Sure, it was the thought that mattered.

Perhaps, this is where the inspiration for bringing something new to the gifting arena came for this Promoter? Perhaps, this is where the synergies with the ‘You are what you drink’ concept converge, too? He can’t be certain.

What is appreciated is the chance to focus upon someone’s personality. It offers the opportunity to be proud of oneself (the Irish as a race are certainly modest!). Personal-a-Teas’ also offers the chance to show a loved one ‘how you see them’, on a personal, emotional level. Like the end of a rainbow, there is magic here! Personal-a-Teas focus is to accentuate the bond between the people: friends, colleagues, employees, customers, alike.

Two weeks ago, the Promoter and his colleague left an SME in Dublin’s South Inner City truly inspired. We entered the premises with a view to raise awareness of the Personal-a-Teas concept and how we are implementing our personalised reward system for the benefit of our client café, Two Pups Coffee. We left enlightened by the potential for opportunity that our concept can bring to other small businesses in the locality, especially those struggling to keep their heads above choppy waters. What we brought to the business owner herself, was that feeling of hope, like a light piercing the enveloping darkness.

And this magical moment was captured in the most human of actions. The hug! You see, as Simon Sinek outlines in the video below, ‘nothing replaces physical human contact’. It was an amazing unexpected sensation. It was a ‘Wow’ moment. Other ‘wow’ moments have also been experienced on this entrepreneurial journey. Such as the look of someone viewing their Personal-a-Teas gift for the first time. Reading, (emphasis on the reading!) the description of their personality (even those who have created their own avatar, themselves!) get great enjoyment from seeing their personality represented in reality. Really there!

So, as a reminder: ‘why do we do what we do?’

We do it to bring a gleam of positivity and happiness into someone’s day. To lift a cloud. To provide a boost. To provide a feeling of ‘not being’ alone, solidarity, membership, empathy.

Our market research threw up some interesting observations. None more so than about the concept of gifting and how it’s viewed between the sexes. When asked, ‘when is the best time to receive a gift?’ almost all males answered (some after much deliberation and head-scratching): ‘birthdays or Christmas’. What did females tend to say?

Surprise me!
‘Surprise me’.