For me, beyond the good design, well written copy, and clever ideas - the ultimate proof of significance for every brand I interact with is service. Can an organization pull off the simple, yet amazingly complex task of connecting well with other human beings.

Brands like Zappos & Chick-fil-A do an amazing job of this. And when they do it, I believe it. It comes from an authentic place. And its obvious.

You can usually smell a phony.

I was at the Cheesecake Factory last week with family. We went in for desert – seems like pretty normal fare for a place named after a desert. We were greeted by our waiter and told him our order. He immediately reacted, "Wow, you're only buying 1 piece of cake for the whole table? $7.45 coming your way…" It was terrible. I was embarrassed and upset. So what if it was a small order – we would have tipped him more than 20% for his time. But now I just wanted to either confront the guy, talk to his manager, or leave. We stuck around, but not before we later heard more passive comments about how he was "A poor waiter" and "Was used to bringing out entrees at this point of the meal." I didn't like the Cheesecake Factory much before. Now I like it less. Service was the ultimate expression of my experience with their brand.

In contrast, I also had one of the most unexpected customer service instances the other day. I called AmEx to cancel a credit card. A pretty routine task – one that I just wanted to get done. I dialed in, but didn't get the benefit of following prompts to cancel the card…I was going to have to talk to a customer service rep. I knew they were going to try and talk me out of canceling the card and try to sell me something. To my surprise, a delightful woman answered the phone and asked me about my need. She didn't try to talk me out of canceling it. She was authentically pleasant, in a way that shined through unlike others. I could tell it was real. She had me smiling by the end of the call. Unexpectedly simple and nice.

If Cheesecake Factory tried to rebrand themselves today based on excellent customer service, I simply wouldn't believe it.

On the other hand, I would believe AmEx if they told me the same story.

Authenticity matters. Social Media doesn't allow many posers to pass through unscathed. Its gotta be real, or it won't matter much in the long-run.

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