DEKAT DIGITAL 2019 - 2020

“In order to grow and expand your brand or business, you ideally need to do four things:
drive customer acquisition, ensure customer retention, propel customer loyalty (return
customers) and guide customer activation (return behaviour),” Louw (widely known as
K-Lo) explains.
“This is achieved twofold: First and foremost it requires uniform DNA for customer-centric
service standards and customer experiences (CX) exclusive to your particular brand culture.
“Secondly, and no less important, is to upskill your customer-facing staff members to
ensure your customer service standards DNA is applied on a continuous basis.” From
the outset, Louw wisely decided to register his company, TSPI (The Service Protocol Institute), and its main focus areas,
namely BQ (Business Intelligence) and SQ (Social Intelligence) as trademarks. He believes this sound decision has set
TSPI apart and given it the edge.
SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE = GOOD MANNERS
Louw’s interventions in customer-centricity solutions through Social IQ and Business IQ are based on more than 25
years’ experience in the customer relationship marketing (CRM) arena, supported by the foundations and principles
of social etiquette and business protocols and behaviour. “Whether you call it etiquette or Social IQ and Business IQ,
at the end of the day it boils down to simple, good manners,” he stresses.
“According to Dorothea Johnson, founder of The Protocol School of Washington in the US, you essentially have
good manners if you have a sensitive awareness of the feelings of other people, irrespective of the fork you
use,” Louw says. “Johnson believes, and I quote, ‘that a person who values civility and good manners will also
demonstrate leadership skills that help create rapport within the workplace. From this grows the feeling of mutual
respect and friendship. These assets will take one far in building relationships, both professional and personal –
clearly, an important investment for one’s future.’”
This is where social intelligence comes in – the ability to manage your own emotional skills needed to correctly read
social situations and other people’s emotions and then to react in a humble manner that is socially acceptable in order
to get others to cooperate and co-exist. “Social intelligence is truly the essence of human relationships,” Louw stresses.
ANECDOTES
Queen Victoria displayed social intelligence many years ago when President Paul Kruger was the guest of
honour at a state banquet at Buckingham Palace. Mistaking the finger bowl placed to his left to clean his fingers
moments before the second course (chicken) was served, for soup, the president took sips of water from the bowl.
Instead of embarrassing him by drawing attention to his faux pas, the queen followed suit, after which all the
guests did the same. Then, without any fuss, she instructed the waiters to remove all the finger bowls… and the
dinner continued smoothly.
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