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I’m a big fan of this customer happiness strategy. My wiring is such that I look for opportunities to do it. But I love terms like dazzle and remarkable. Better yet I love to deliver those kinds of experiences.

Let me illustrate what it looks like.

I once had a customer of a retailing company I was leading who was not happy. He had made an extensive investment with our company, a luxury retail company. The details don’t matter, but the product hadn’t provided him with the spectacular experience it should have. The person in our company handling this client did a proper job of trying to resolve the issue by working with the manufacturer and the client. But it was going far too slowly. And the customer continued to escalate his concerns.

For context, you should know the customer was a great customer based on the investment he made with our company. That spoke of the trust he put in us. Additionally, he was our ideal client. He lived in one of the richest zip codes in Texas (and the country). He was a surgeon. His home was often used to entertain and the people he entertained were also our clients or prospective clients.

One day his frustrations boiled over and he wound up getting me on the phone where I patiently listened. After explaining his situation – which he did without interruption from me – I paused and asked him, “Dr. ___________, I’m only interested in one thing, making you happy. What would make you happy?” He was completely taken off guard so I continued, “It’s not a loaded question. I’m being completely honest and truthful. I’m going to resolve this for you right now before we hang up, but since you’re the person who has been inconvenienced and you’re the one we’ve disappointed, I don’t think it’s fair of me to tell you what we’ll do to make you happy. I’d rather you decide.”

The doctor said, “I don’t know what to say. This is why we do business with your company because we know this is how you guys are going to work, but I don’t know how to answer that.”

I asked if he’d permit me to put him on hold for about 30 seconds while I pulled up all the necessary details on his transaction. He happily agreed. In about 15 seconds I was back on the phone.

“Let’s talk this through,” I suggested.

One item was at the heart of the problems. One of many. It was an item that was over $1,000. Closer to $1,500. We had gone back and forth with the vendor to resolve the issue, but a defective part was back ordered making the doctor’s brand new purchase – already installed in his home (that was the catch) – unusable.

It was evident the doctor knew we’d take care of him, but he didn’t have any suggestions. Mostly because the product was already installed and it wasn’t some simple installation (or de-installation and re-installation). There were a few hours of labor and a few hundred dollars of costs associated with it.

So as not to prolong the problem I offered the doctor a suggestion.

“Let me ask you a question,” I said. “Based on what I know you love that item and it’s the one you most want, is that right?”

“Yes, absolutely. I just want it to work as it should,” he said.

“Would you be happy if today – or at your earliest convenience – we uninstalled that one and replaced it with a brand new one…”I began. He interrupted, “Oh, absolutely. I’d be thrilled.”

“Let me finish…” I continued. “And…I’m going to refund you the entire purchase price of the item and the installation charge, too.”

“Would that make you happy?” I asked.

The phone went silent for a bit. “Doctor? Are you still there?” I asked.

“Yes, I’m here,” he said. “That’s unbelievable. You don’t have to do that. I’d be thrilled to have you install a replacement unit. You don’t need to return any money. That’s a lot of money.”

“No, sir. I’m happy to do it and I apologize for the problems you’ve had,” I said.

We chatted a bit more and he pressed how it had only been a few days since the installation, but he had a big party planned (something I already knew) and he admitted to being somewhat panicked about it because his wife was anxious.

“Well, let’s relieve her anxiety and fix your problem today,” I offered.

So that’s what we did.

When I informed the staff member of what I’d done, she was not very happy. I understood it. She’d been slavishly working with the manufacturer to get this problem handled as she had been directed. I had come in, and in one fell swoop, yanked the rug out from under her.

So I explained. “Dr. ___________ spent almost $20,000 with us. He entertains regularly. We’re his store of choice. I was able to do for him what we’d like to be able to do for everybody, but it’s impractical. We spend hundreds of dollars to get a customer. If we spend hundreds to get a customer, doesn’t it make sense to forfeit hundreds in profit or to invest hundreds in cost to keep a customer…particularly a high-end customer who can be made happy?”

Only a fool would have said, “No.” She was no fool.

It was the right thing to do and it was money well spent. During the doctor’s party do you suppose he told any guests the story of what happened? I’d venture to guess he told everybody. And that’s priceless.

Figure out what you can do for one that you’d like to do for many. Then go do it.

Be well. Do good. Grow great!

RC

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 8:54 — 10.7MB)

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How old is your business? It’s only relative to how bloated your systems may be. But maybe not. I’ve seen start-ups with bloated systems, too.

Over time things tend to get more complex, not simpler. We have to be very intentional to keep things simple, clean and straight-forward.

I once took leadership of a company to get it to the next level. Shortly after I arrived it was apparent there were lots of procedures and systems that had been implemented to fix a problem. The problem is you could tell the company was doing something to fix one problem, but unwittingly the company had created multiple other problems. It’s that whole law of unintended consequences thing. Fix one thing and create about three new problems. Then, some system or process is put in place to try to fix those.

One day I began to gather all the forms used by the company. Forms that involved customer interaction. Forms that directly impacted the customer interface.

At first there were 6, then 9, then 16, then 27. The number kept growing. Everywhere I looked there were systems on top of systems. Processes for other processes. The business was bloated with systems.

It frustrated me because I have an obsession with being nimble. Moving quickly and efficiently is just how I prefer to roll. All this hoop jumping was anything but nimble.

I ditched them. All of them. We burned them to the ground and started from scratch. Turns out about 3 systems took care of it all. Three.

Because we’re focused on the customer experience it’s time to take a look at the systems that may be getting in the way. Some companies put things in the way intentionally. These are the worst companies on the planet when it comes to customer happiness.

Some companies bet on breakage. That is, they make things difficult because they know a big percentage of people will just accept the status quo. Take cable or satellite TV providers, notorious companies for inching up the monthly expense for their customers. By implementing invoice creep these companies make millions in extra profit. You’ve experienced this.

Your invoice goes up. You don’t notice. Until you do. And when you do notice you’re faced with, “What can I do about this?” Only one thing you can do…enter the system designed by the company to make it as difficult as possible for you. They want this to be so difficult you give up and just accept the escalated rate.

If you are brave enough (and determined enough) to make the call, then you have to endure a long-winded wait, followed by a long-winded ordeal to get the bill down. But you’ll likely be offered a new lower rate only by agreeing to a 2-year extension to your contract, where you’re agreeing they can change their pricing at will.

It’s a pathetic business model that in time will lose because customers won’t tolerate it as better options are offered. Streaming TV services are disrupting the cable and satellite TV industry. The customers are going to win because they’ve got the power.

The companies that cater to the customers are also going to win. And big.

Wal-Mart began the trend in modern business by giving the customer what he wanted at a price he could afford. By making things straight-forward and easy Wal-Mart exploded in the ’80s and ’90s. With world-class logistic and buying power, they changed the landscape of retailing. Along the way, they made customer returns easy. Before Wal-Mart, very few retailers had a liberal return policy, but the folks in Bentonville led the way with “bring it back for any reason.” Today, it’s just how things are with nearly every retailer.

Amazon took things to a whole new level by having a focus on the shopper unrivaled in the history of retail. Nobody – NOBODY – does it better. Amazon is world-class because of it. They’re the easiest company on the planet to do business with. Nobody is easier. They’re determined to make sure of it. And they’ve got the success to prove it. And to keep it going.

Simpler for whom? That’s the issue.

You already know the answer: the customer! It’s all about the customer.

That’s not how things used to be. Businesses imposed on customers to make it easier on themselves. Otherwise, they had to sacrifice some profit. That’s AT&T’s problem. And DIRECTV. And all the other mammoth companies who think they’re too big to fail. They’re wrong. Nobody is ever too big to fail. Nobody.

If you believe customers should be squeezed for every bit of profit potential available, then you’ll design systems to accomplish that.

If you believe customers are the foundation upon which your business will rise or fall, then you’ll design systems to make their lives vastly easier.

I was quite young when I first heard a business guy talking about customer happiness versus satisfaction. “Do you want your wife to be happy, or satisfied?”

Nuff said. Flush the systems that make your customers lives miserable. Stop getting in the way of your own success.

Be well. Do good. Grow great!

RC

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 8:58 — 11.4MB)

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New information is invigorating. Especially if you’re curious. You ARE curious, aren’t you? Curious enough to figure out what you may not know? Or to figure out something a bit better that you thought you may have already figured out?

The other day I was discussing books with a friend. We were challenging each other to remember a book that really made a lasting impact. During the conversation, we both concluded that we benefited from many books with snippets of new information here and there. It’s the value of reading – the quest to learn something you may not have known before.

Reading is great for those of us who love to do it. Podcasts are pretty terrific, too. 😉 But these are quite passive. We consume them. It’s the author or the podcaster communicating to us. Highly valuable, but still very lacking.

A New Relationship With Somebody Who Has Different Experiences, Skills, And Viewpoints

Some years ago I formed a relationship with somebody new. I was attending a small conference. I didn’t know anybody else attending. But I met someone. Someone who felt like a kindred spirit, but somebody very different from me.

That was close to ten years ago.

Since that time we’ve pushed each other, challenged each other, supported each other and shared common beliefs as well as differing ones. The meeting was organic – kinda sorta – but we both leaned into it and made it intentional. We’ve been purposeful in leveraging the power we can each have on one another. It’s a one-on-one peer advantage. Just like reading, it’s highly valuable and more so because it has dynamic interaction. But it’s still very lacking.

Self-improvement is at the heart of growing great.

It’s about YOUR self-improvement, but not just yours. It’s about mine, too. And that guy over there. And that woman over there. Yes, and her, too. And him.

When you intentionally leverage the power of others you’re both giving and receiving. When you give more, you get more. Way more. And I’m not just talking about some intrinsic feeling knowing you did well. I’m talking about a real, substantial life-changing benefit.

It’s The High Energy Of Community – The RIGHT Community

Do me a favor. Think of a time when you were in a conversation where your energy was elevated. I mean a time when your energy soared and you felt the impact of instantly. If your life had an energy meter it would have hit a much higher number than normal because this conversation was different. Special.

Research has shown the positive power of community. Support groups prove the point. Alcoholics Anonymous. Weight Watcher. There are plenty of examples. But don’t restrict your thinking of community to traditional support groups. It’s much broader – and often deeper than that.

The true peer advantage is about more than taking advantage. It’s also about giving an advantage to others.

There are a few things I hear more often than anything else. Among them are business owners concerned about what they don’t know. They’re worried about the things they can’t see. Or the things they can’t see clearly enough.

Blind spots. I hear leaders fretful about theirs. And trying to figure out how to eliminate them or at least reduce them.

It’s tough to be truthful with yourself. And that may be among our biggest blind spot of all. How we see ourselves.

Where do we go to improve that?

To whom do we turn for assistance with that?

It’s The Power Of A Room. The Right Room.

“The smartest man in the room” syndrome is real. You know people like that. The opposite isn’t the dumbest-man-in-the-room, but the man (or woman) who realizes the power isn’t completely within themselves but in the room itself. It’s the power of the collective. The group of people in the room.

Let’s get back to that energy. You remember. The time when you felt energized because you were in conversation with people who lifted you up (however you care to define that). Fact is, the more we surround ourselves by other people trying to achieve what we’re trying to achieve (people all trying to train for a marathon, for example) or by other people all determined to grow and improve…the greater our probability of success. We can all do more. Together. We just have to get in the right room. The room where the power is.

What do you look for?

A few things. Trust. Information. Learning. Insight. Experiences.

Peer pressure is often thought of negatively, but it also works in the most positive directions. People helping people. People helping themselves in the presence of other people also helping themselves.

When we’re in a community focused on learning and understanding growth happens. It happens because it provides the energy necessary to grow. It’s why people achieve more and find richer success together. It’s why so many solo efforts fail. Nobody else is in the room to help us to our feet when we fall. Nobody is available to give us a leg up when we need it most.

It’s support and help coupled with intensely deep learning together – and from one another. It makes the room the most powerful room we can be in. If we’ll just go inside open to all the value we can provide for others and for the value others can provide to us.

The Peer Advantage by Bula Network is my effort to do just that for small business owners who are close to the work. Operators.

I’m now accepting applications for enrollment at ThePeerAdvantage.com. This is a paid for peer group of just 7 U.S. based entrepreneurs intent on putting themselves in a room where they can grow their businesses, their leadership, and their lives.

We’ll meet twice a month, every other week, online using a video conferencing platform. That means it’ll be super convenient and easy, reducing wasted time. Your time is highly valuable and so is mine. There are tons of positive reasons why this is your very best opportunity for growth. Go visit that website for all the details. I hope you’ll go there right now and complete the application. Only those who dare to intentionally leverage the power of others will do it. I hope you’re a person like that.

Be well. Do good. Grow great!

RC

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 5:50 — 7.8MB)

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How do you measure up as a business owner?

How do you measure up as a leader?

How does your business stack up?

People mostly gauge such things by looking externally, not internally. We look around at other people and other businesses. Then we mentally (mostly emotionally) compare ourselves and our business. We don’t feel so good afterward.

This is especially personal when we look at direct competitors. And some of us view everybody and everything as a competitor. Years ago I learned that the zero-sum game I was taught when I was young…is wrong. It’s a major distraction to becoming our best.

But today’s title isn’t quite 100% accurate. There’s often much to learn from the competition, but it’s not what you think. It’s the innovation in looking at industries and companies with a dedication to figure out how to best fix their problems. But when we do that, are we really looking at the competition or are we looking at how an industry or company can better serve customers?

It’s a powerful distraction – fixating on the competition. It leads to excuse-making, copy-cat execution and becoming average. It robs businesses of bravery and leadership.

Unless you’re looking at the competition to architect how you’re going to beat their brains in. But as you may or may not know, I’m a big fan of Jack Welch and his strategic planning.

“Our strategic plan is to ask, ‘What can the competition do in the next 18 months to nail us to the wall?’ Then we ask, ‘What can we do in the next 18 months to nail them to the wall?'”

I’m a kid from the 70’s so I was taught to be competitive and have a strong desire to bury the competition. Working in retail as a teenager though quickly taught me there was a much better way and I admit I’m a product of my experience. I learned that trying to figure out how to best the competition was a waste of time with shoppers. They didn’t care about the competition. They only cared about what they most wanted. Very quickly I realized the futility of thinking about the other stereo shops in town. Instead, I learned to pay close attention to the shoppers. I made sure to listen carefully, watch their body language and pay attention to shopper behavior. My goal was to dazzle every shopper so they’d become a customer. Then I wanted to make the customer so happy they’d become a client (a repeat customer).

By the time I was operating a multi-million dollar retail company it was well ingrained in my business DNA…

Don’t take your eyes or ears off the customer!

There’s one simple reason why it works. It’s not limiting.

Fixate on the competition and you’re instantly limiting your operation. You’ll get stuck in industry standards and traditional thinking.

Fixate on the customer and you’re free to think beyond anything ever done in your industry. All the rules get tossed out when you concentrate on the customer.

There’s another big reason worth mentioning though. Your competition isn’t paying your bills. Customers are. By thinking and looking at the competition you surrender yourself to become their servant. They’re not who you’re serving! So why look at them?

Lastly, let me encourage you to embrace quantum-leap thinking. When you look at the competition you avoid quantum-leap thinking. Instead, you tend to dwell on incremental thinking. Being just a little bit better than the competition is comforting when you’re focused on them. That’s boring. For you and for all your employees. I’ve never found a 3% improvement a very effective battle cry for the troops. But most everybody can get behind doing something nobody else may be doing or doing something most others think impossible.

Quantum-leap thinking is possible when you continue to focus on the customer, not the competition. Live and die by the questions, “What can we do to make ourselves remarkable to the customer?” And, “How can we dazzle the customer?”

Be ordinary by looking at the competition.

Be remarkable by looking at the customer.

Be well. Do good. Grow great!

RC

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 7:42 — 9.3MB)

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This week’s theme is the customer experience. Namely, customer happiness!

Today let’s focus on the user interface of your business. The easy way to think of this is touchpoints. Sit down and make a note of every touchpoint your business has with a prospect or customer.

Over the past few weeks, you’ve heard me talk a lot about becoming a better human being. I did that because it’s how I see the world and our place in it. We owe it to ourselves and to each other to be better people. Kindness. Compassion. And all the other things that go with being a good person are critical to our business ownership and leadership. I believe that.

Yes, I know miserable people who are financially successful. They win at the expense of most people they interact with and they do it without shame. I know others who are poor humans because they have a wife and children, along with a handful of mistresses around the country. I know money is agnostic about how good or bad a person is. That’s why drug dealers are wildly financially successful. Money doesn’t care.

But people do. God does. The world does. And you do, too. Because you’ve got to live with yourself.  So does your family. Those are all compelling reasons to work harder to become better.

Now, back to touchpoints with prospects and customers. Let me define the term for you – it’s every point of contact you make with them and every point of contact they can make with you.

For most of us it starts with marketing and sales. Examine the first touchpoint, which is likely going to be advertising of some sort. That’s you reaching out to touch prospects so you can convert some of them into customers.

I realize that’s a full-blown discussion – advertising – but look at it through the prospect’s eyes and feelings, not your own. What’s the goal of your advertising? You have to know. Otherwise, you won’t know if it’s working or not.

Turn of the century merchant John Wanamaker is credited with saying, “Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don’t know which half.” That was likely very true in John’s day. He died in 1922. But today most of us can structure advertising in such a way that we can measure the effectiveness.

Are we looking for leads? Sales? Sign-ups? What are we hoping to gain from the advertising? I’m looking for the specific thing you want the ad to accomplish.

This touchpoint is critical because it’s how you present yourself to the market and it costs you money. You have to get this more right than not. Be critical about this touchpoint. Ask every question you can think of. Scrutinize it 8 ways to Sunday and be relentless to get it more right all the time. The bottom line is that this touchpoint should deliver big returns that you wouldn’t otherwise get.

Your list of touchpoints might include things like:

• How the phone is answered
• How the website looks (and how users navigate, including on mobile devices)
• How the emails look
• How problems are handled
• How “thank you” is delivered after a sale
• How follow-up happens
• How invoices look
• How billing challenges are executed
• How marketing makes people feel

We’re talking about every single contact you make and every single contact your prospects and customers make. What does it look like? Is it presenting your business the way you want? Is it ideally serving the people it intends to serve? Or is it ridiculously cumbersome?

“May I have your phone number please?” You give it. Five questions later you have to give it to them again. “But I just gave it to you,” you blurt out. You know why that happens. The person on the other end of the phone is going through a series of screens, forced on him by the computer program, and it doesn’t auto-fill your first answer. So the poor guy has to ask it again. And you’re hacked!

Don’t do that to your customers! Fix that stupid stuff. Right now.

Too often we assume all these touchpoints are happening exactly as they should. And we’re also incorrectly assuming they don’t make or break our success. But they do.

Get every single touchpoint right. Then keep working to get it even more right. Don’t ever take your eyes off it. Because when you do, it’ll slip. And that slippage will the sound of your customer base eroding.

No interaction is too small or insignificant. Every single one matters.

Gather your leadership brain trust and review them all thoroughly. Test them. Improve them. Train them. And hold everybody accountable for their perfect execution.

Think about your own lack of tolerance for a poor interface. If things don’t work the way you expect, how does that make you feel? How long do you tolerate it? How happy are you?

And that’s what we’re after – customer HAPPINESS. Not satisfaction!

Be well. Do good. Grow great!

RC

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 11:06 — 13.2MB)

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Yesterday we talked about figuring out what you want to change about yourself. Today let’s focus on where you want to go.

I’m not assuming that where you are currently isn’t where you want to be, but I will assume it’s not where you want to stay. I’m not advocating feeling dissatisfied, discontented or unhappy with your current position. You may be those things – and that’s okay if you’re not close to your ideal, but it’s not going to be profitable to dwell on it without taking action. So the bottom line for today is the goal of figuring this out so you can do something about it.

What do you want to be known for?

That’s the deal. It’s the culmination of figuring out where you want to go.

When people think of you, what do you most want them to think? 

These get to the heart of what’s important to you.

A person who wants to be known for something behaves in ways congruent with BEING that. And it doesn’t matter what IT is.

When I was in college I remember reading quite a lot about writing and writers. Somewhere along the way I read something profoundly simple, but the more I thought about it the more I realized it spoke to any activity. It was a two-word sentence (and I’d happily give attribution to whoever wrote it, but it was far too long ago to remember)…

Writers write.

I thought about that for a long, long time. I still think about it because it’s ridiculously accurate.

Writers write. It’s what they do. It’s what they’re known for. It’s what people think of when they think of them.

I’m not saying it’s all-encompassing and that people don’t think of anything else about them, but it’s likely the primary thing.

Now apply that sentence structure to where you most want to go – the thing you most want to accomplish. Start by going macro, big picture. Drill down to the micro and go as deep as you’d like, the details.

Leaders lead.

Bosses boss.

Painters paint.

Musicians play.

What do you do? Mostly?

You’ll quickly discover that this is largely about your identity. It begins with how you see yourself. From there, it morphs into how others see you. That’s a big part of figuring out where you want to go…coming to terms with how you most want to see yourself.

All week there’s been this underlying focus on a very important element of self-awareness and your personal growth. It’s your self-respect. Being comfortable in your skin because you like who you’ve become. You agree and approve of what you’re trying to become. Sure, you know it’s a journey but so far, so good. You’re pleased with the direction and the progress. Mostly.

Or you’re not.

In either case, you can do better. We all can.

It’s about feeling good about the effort. Last week I talked about why happiness may not the very best goal because it’s a moment we’re chasing. Joy may be a better representation of what we want because that’s long-lasting.

Let’s focus on the effort of figuring out where we want to go because it’s active, not passive. We have to do something other than merely thinking about it.

Writers write.

So once again, what do you DO?

What do you most want to do?

If those are different, why? Are you sure you know where you want to go? Are you sure it’s where YOU want to go and not where somebody else wants you to go?

When I was a kid there was a TV show on called, “This Is Your Life.” Here’s an episode featuring Betty White, the actress.

The host of the TV show would surprise the celebrity and walk them into the studio where the show was produced. Along the way, he’d tell their story and surprise them with people from their past and present. It was considered a big honor and most shows were filled with emotions.

This is your life.

Nobody else will account for YOUR life. You answer for it. Just you.

We’ve already stressed the importance of accepting responsibility for your own choices, decisions, behavior, and actions. So this is on YOU. May as well make the most of it. May as well accept it as fact…because it is fact.

When people think of YOU and who you are, they’re thinking of YOU. They may associate you with others, but you are you. So, like we said yesterday, let’s own it all. Every bit of it.

Where are you right now? It’s perfectly fine – likely beneficial – for us to examine how far we’ve come. You’ve learned some things. You now understand some things. You’ve grown. Take some time to reflect and give yourself credit.

Give thanks. Be grateful for where you are. Count your blessings.

Where do you want to go from here? This is the heart of figuring out where you want to go. Sure, it’s partly an ideal you may be chasing long-term, but it’s largely some things you’re unhappy with about yourself. Don’t go too many days in a row not liking yourself (there’s that self-respect again). Start being more true to who you most want to be by defining your direction more precisely.

I call you up to come get me. I text you the address where I’m at, “2024 Easy Street.” You could go to 2024 Easy Lane and I won’t be there. You could go to 2025 Easy Street and still not find me. Close isn’t on target. It’s not precise enough to get the job done so stop being too general in figuring out where you want to go.

Think. Then do.

Put in the work that your ideal self would put on. When I was young I wanted to write. So guess what I did? Yep, I started writing. A lot.

Don’t wait until you think you’ve reached the destination. That’s not how you’ll find me at 2024 Easy Street. You’ll have to get in your car and drive there. You can’t instantly teleport yourself there…you have to take the actions necessary to take you there. Ditto for figuring out where you want to go.

Lean in hard to the verb, GO. And do it.

Be well. Do good. Grow great!

RC