I got the first episode series of “The Office” from Netflix this weekend. It’s a successful comedy from BBC about a goofy branch manager who manages an apathetic workforce by trying to get them to laugh. It’s fast, subtle and very funny.
I could comment on the management lessons learned from the show, but you’d have to see it. What you CAN see now is the The Office website.
I’ve seen other American TV shows web sites and they’re pretty straightforward – show times, character pictures, actor backgrounds. But BBC gets it, and The Office site does it right. They understand to use the site to pull viewers deeper into the show’s brand because the show is a reflection of the viewers’ lives.
Of course the site includes summaries of each episode, backgrounds of the characters, actors career, pictures, and clips.
However, it also includes the “definitive guide” to The Office, backstage Polaroids, a place for fans to send in look-alike pictures of the main character, exclusive clips, Christmas cards, and pictures of viewers’ offices.
The Office is a brand within which viewers find personal association. The site allows customers to interact with that brand by expressing themselves. They use it as a mirror to reflect themselves.
Great companies get customers involved in the company, empowering them to associate closer to the brand. They feed customers’ desire to express themselves. Do your customers see themselves through your brand? And does your site (and your company) allow them to reflect?