We’ve lost our way with customer service. On a recent project, I asked consumers which brands follow the golden rule (treating others like you’d like to be treated)? Which brands stand out when it comes to customer service? Blank faces. Stares. Customer service horror stories ensued rather than good ones.

Okay…which brands at least acknowledge you and try to help you? A few brands and helpful employees were reluctantly mentioned, but nothing more. One consumer said, “Most companies are just above crap levels.” Nice.

What dawned on me at this point is that good ‘ole customer service has now become a differentiator. When every brand is looking to offer unique and differentiated experiences for its customers through any means possible, we’ve forgotten the most obvious way to build a relationship with customers. Through relationship building! It’s like we’ve over-complicated it.

In many industries, we’ve forgotten or downright neglected the most basic ingredient of treating humans like they’re human. And when we do do this, it’s usually no more than a smile and a handshake from an employee. In other words, we’re super archaic about customer service, even when we’re trying to be intentional about it. We’ve forgotten that we can leverage innovation and technology to build relationships. As innovators, we use too often technology and innovation to grab attention, to be sexy, and not to create authentic relationship.

The good news is that it can be so much more than that. So much more than that through technology alone. Here’s a couple examples to bring this to life:

Comparing and contrasting products in many categories online can be hard, requiring us to jump from site to site and source to source. So, what about an integrated user experience? Blur the lines between search engines, brand websites, and social media by integrating consumer reviews, consumer ratings, social commentary, professional/expert reviews, personalized product recommendations, etc. into a single experience within an integrated user interface.

Further, shopping in-store can daunting and overwhelming, particularly when you’re not familiar with the store or what you want to purchase. What about a concierge app? Allow shoppers to be given an audio and visually-rich tour of the store with their phone. To interact with those hard to find store employees, create functions that allow users to track the whereabouts of employees, set appointments, ask questions, request specific services, monitor where they are in the queue, etc.

What about creating an app that acts as a digital stylist and personalized recommendation engine in store?

For employees, what about a Daily Briefing app that offers a few key tips for the day and related training and competitive intelligence topics?

The point is less about these specific ideas and more about using design and innovation as a means to connect with customers and facilitate their experiences.

Store and websites just don’t seem to have service at the top of the radar executionally, and that’s downright wrong. Let’s re-invent customer service and in turn, re-invent middling brands. Let’s work together across business and design disciplines to restore this lost art. A smile, a handshake, and some 21st century razzle dazzle can make all the difference.

So my first blog entry is about the Dodgers, a team I hate (go Giants!), not to mention that this isn’t meant to be a sports blog.

That said, they’re becoming an interesting case study about leadership and how that has the power to change a brand more than anything else. Think about it – one year ago, the Dodgers were a laughingstock, mostly due to a lame duck owner who was selfish and in over his head. Now however, one year later, they’re on a historic streak and set to challenge for the championship. Why? Some say it’s because they have a leadership group that is loaded with $. Yeah, that helps. But, there’s lotsa sports teams with big payrolls that aren’t successful.

I think it’s more about personality and confidence among this leadership group.

In terms of personality, style and charisma go a long way to inspire and captivate our imaginations. A big smile is well…big. Substance definitely needs to back up style, but style perks our ears, gets us to listen to the vision. Deliver the same vision without panache and nobody listens, nobody buys in.

Then there’s this sense of confidence. It’s not an eff you bravado, and it’s not a quiet confidence either. Somewhere in between. A sense of swagger mixed with a genuine, “Follow me, I know what I’m doing” approach. The Dodgers made a giant trade last summer that cost them literally hundreds of millions of dollars in new player salaries. Who triples payroll the first couple months on the job? Confident dudes. And confident dudes with a singular vision at that. Confidence breeds unity. A shared purpose.

Will the Dodgers win it all this year? Let’s hope not. Will they add even more content to the many leadership books and philosophies already out there? Let’s hope not. But, sometimes, it’s the simple things that can teach us all over again. Personality and confidence – let’s not forget their power.