What happens when a brand makes a mistake?

For instance overcharging you for home insurance over a period of 4 years or not giving you the right number of pension units 8 years ago? Well, I received a cheque from Nat West for £600 for the overcharging and £190 from Prudential for the pension mistake. I had absolutely no idea I was due this money and one part of me feels good that they recognised their mistakes and have paid me some money. Is it the right amount of money? Haven’t a clue. Does it make me trust those brands more? No. Does it make me trust those brands less? Yes. Do I feel that other financial providers would be any better? No.

The reason why they felt compelled to pay some money back was more to do with what a new auditor had uncovered, rather than any moral high ground being sought. The tone of the letters, that accompanied the cheques, were not very apologetic, having been suitably screened by the various legal departments. A minor gap in the month’s accounts will result but they can explain that away as a one-off to their shareholders.

It is true that in many companies, particularly those companies that charge you monthly for services, it is the loyal customers that stay with a brand year after year, that get the worst deal and it is the new customers, who get the best deal. This enables brands to have a seductive “Headline Shout”, whilst not having to give this great deal to their existing customers. How does that sit with a value like trust?

Yet these are the very companies that declare trust to be one of the things they hold dear. Increasingly, trust has become a term without substance, when applied to the way that a company operates.

Instead it is the consumer, who decides who they trust and they then share this belief with those that are closest to them in the form of recommendations. Hasn’t it always been so? In a way, it has but with people being able to communicate so much more than they have ever been able to before, then the potential to pass on these recommendations has never been greater. Imagine if all the emails you received every day were sent as letters. Or if each search you performed on the internet was delivered to you as a newspaper.

Or each text message delivered as a telegram?

We have come along way in the last few years and the volume of communications between people will only increase. Which means that word of mouth, the oldest of all the communication channels, is back.

And back with a vengeance.

Most of us only have one Hen or Stag Do, so it's important to find the right place to enjoy the last vestiges of freedom. I've been on a fair few stag weekends and so I feel I'm in a good position to comment on most of the Top 10 most recommended locations for Stag Do's on LoveThis...

Antwerp – I would personally recommend this as I went there last year. It’s really easy to get to via Eurostar. Full of bars, karaoke and decent restaurants. Incredibly cheap hotel rooms. Not so popular that stag or hen nights are banned or unwelcome. I stayed at the IBIS hotel, which is central and went to many bars, the names of which elude me but there was one where the barman was incredibly tall (well over 7ft). Try Petrol if you really want to party or Den Hopsack if you want to see local artists of all backgrounds perform on a quieter night.

Edinburgh – Not great if you are very posh and very English but great for everyone else. (Why? Listen to the words to ‘Flower of Scotland’). The downside ( or it could be an upside) is that there will be lots of other stags and hens happening at the same time and that you are unlikely to get turned away from anywhere (have you ever heard of a Scot turning away money?). The piano bar in Hanover St is a must as is a trip to one of the many fish and chip shops (Haggis in batter is incredibly tasty). The Good Pub Guide recommend a few pubs on LoveThis, including The Bennets.

Bournemouth – if your impression of Bournemouth is lots of old ladies huddled in blankets overlooking the sea, then you probably won’t know that Bournemouth is the clubbing capital of Britain. And what better way to sober up than a dip in the sea? Try The Dean Park for a good, hangover curing Sunday roast.

Prague – the stag and hen capital of Europe, due to cheap beer and cheap clubs. Although there are nice places to eat, you have to know where to go. Mecca is a popular ‘superclub’ amongst LoveThis members and Studio 54 is open late (or rather, early..) for those who plan to have an all-nighter.

Las Vegas – If you haven’t seen the movie, The Hangover, do. It’s all the inspiration you need for a trip to Vegas…

Krackow – Some say it’s the new Prague. Avoid if you fear going underground as most of the bars seem to require descending some stairs, but otherwise it’s a great (and cheap) place to visit. 

Cabo San Lucas – A fair few celebrities have chosen to party here before tying the knot, including Christina Aguilera and Zoe Ball.  Americans will be ware of Los Cabos, but many Europeans haven’t heard of it.  Think an American version of Amsterdam with sun, sea and sand. Try the One&Only Palmilla if you want a quiet bit of luxury for your hangovers (maybe not if you intend to go too crazy..).  And you have to visit the Happy Ending Cantina, one of Cabo’s most famous bars

Enjoy!

James

P.S. See what Alexis, founder of LoveThis, has to say on his blog...

When you explain the purpose of LoveThis, most people nod in appreciation of the potential benefits. 'That’s clever...nice idea...I like it' is a typical response.

However, if you sit next to someone filling in their first recommendations, you will see a really animated response. People really like to share their knowledge and once they’ve shared one recommendation , they want to share another ...and then another.

So could LoveThis become a replacement for less healthy cravings? The scientific answer is probably ‘yes’.

The simple act of giving a recommendation is probably the easiest way of achieving a feeling of self-worth. Self-worth, according to Wikipedia, is a basic human need and requires constant reinforcement to maintain a high level of self –worth. One of the realities about living in the rat race is that chances to reinforce your self-worth are few and far between.

So giving recommendations is good for you.

Clearly what’s even better is if you are looking for something and you can find a high quality recommendation really quickly and easily. But it’s not so addictive is it?

Thankfully with LoveThis, you can give and receive.

P.S. - The rest of the LoveThis team share their thoughts on the social recommendations space at blog.lovethis.com

Anyone who has ever watched the hugely successful TV programme ‘Come dine with me’, will be familiar with low interest dinner party conversations. Imagine instead that you are sat round a dinner table surrounded by your most trusted friends and family, as well as a generous sprinkling of journalists, each of whom is a real expert in a particular subject. Then ask everyone for some good recommendations. The result would be an incredibly useful set of plumbers, wines, places to visit, hotels, music, films, books etc . The only slight problem is that you’d forget them all by the next morning or write them down on bits of paper that would soon get lost.

Alternatively, you could invite all your friends onto LoveThis – we take care of inviting the experts– and all these recommendations will be stored for ever.

It’s like your own personal little black book of your friends' recommendations.

And what would you eat at this dinner party?

I would recommend James Martin’s smoked haddock patties, followed by Nigella’s coq au vin and finished off by my own summer pudding recipe, which only my friends can see. Washed down with 2008 Laughing Magpie Shiraz.

P.S. - The rest of the LoveThis team share their thoughts on the social recommendations space at blog.lovethis.com