Connecting the Dots
Phycologists say that humans rarely take on new behaviors past the age of 16 unless they experience a significant emotional event. Traditional training in a classroom, didactical lectures, or even e-training does not provide learners with a high enough emotional impact; leading the knowledge learnt through training that comes and goes like the tide of the ocean. One of my favorite sayings I use ALL the time during my training sessions is “I know Monday will come” meaning we will go back to routine, step onto our preverbal hamster wheel and not change a thing. We keep doing what we’ve always done; leaning into what our parents, teachers, leaders and other role models in our youth have taught us to do. However I have figured out that there is a way to awaken our senses and provide experiential training that has an emotional impact! If you want your team to action what they are learning then flip your training right side up and have them experience what it is they are supposed to be learning or delivering. Connecting the dots I had finished a keynote on ‘How to Deliver a Five Start Experience’ at a spa and esthetics conference where I chose to capitalize on the fact that my entire team was in one room! We are a remote company which makes meaningful training extremely difficult. With excitement, I decide to ‘carpe memento’ and I rounded them up when the room had emptied and said to them “if you’re going to train on how to deliver a five star experience you need to experience what five star is!” and off we went to visit one of them most iconic hotels known for its five-star experience; Ritz Carlton. As a bonus, I had a client present, so I brought them along for the experience!! We ate at the restaurant within the Ritz and as the meal and service progressed I would ask the team what they saw, felt, and observed. It was magical to see my team and client connect the dots of theory into practice. We focused on all the details it truly takes to deliver an experience that is thoughtful, seamless, and memorable. I watched their eyes light up every time they knew they noticed a little detail that made a BIG difference! One particular moment comes to mind from that night. Everyone who knows me knows that I love a glass of rose at the end of a long day. Naturally I proceeded to shift through the wine list for a dry rose. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a rose by the glass on the menu. Our server that night didn’t miss a beat. In true Ritz Carlton fashion when I asked if they had a dry rose by the glass she said absolutely and proceeded to tell me the options. I asked her to try a certain one and she said of course. Here’s the thing- she could’ve stopped there and just given me the option I requested. Instead she listened to the description of what I was looking for and when she returned to give me the taste of rose had requested she also brought a bottle of Whispering Angel (my fav!!!). With excitement and passion, she presented the bottle of Whispering Angel and said “I went looking to see if we had anything else I could offer you that would suit your palate and I found a bottle of Whispering Angel! It is dry and crisp and really fits with what you were looking for, would you like a glass of this?” and of course I said yes! My team and client were watching the whole interaction, and once the server left they got so excited for me! They pointed out everything she did and in that moment, saw the difference in experience that a five-star experience provides. Turning everything they have ever learnt into reality. But what was even more impactful was the emotion of excitement they felt while they observed and listened. The Difference Not only did they experience the difference, they described the difference. They walked away with stories to tell which sparked an emotional event and in turn has them living and teaching the theory they’ve been taught. I do this during my workshops and trainings as well! I was recently with a group for a two-day workshop. Day one was focused on the theory behind cultivating a five-star experience and day two was focused on experiencing and building a five-star experience. I had part of the team shop their locations and the other shopped competitors. This really opened up their minds and helped them to see the ‘theory’ in action. The result was amazing! The team was engaged, energized, and excited to make their experience the best in the retail industry! I am not the only one doing this, however there are a select few that do. Surprise, Ritz Carlton is in that prestigious group. How can they expect their teams at all levels around the world deliver a world class experience if they don’t know what it is? Each employee has the opportunity to stay one weekend at a Ritz Carlton with their family so they can feel what it’s like to experience “Ladies and Gentlemen Serving Ladies and Gentlemen”. Pure brilliance! Look outside your industry Send your teams to restaurants, hotels, spas, coffee shops, retail shops, and really any company that provides an experience that you feel you want to provide. During their experience ask the them to document the following areas: • The company • Detailed description of the experience • What they did that blew them away • How they felt, and • What best practice can be actioned with your organization Empowering your team members to experience what you preach and giving them the opportunity to be part of designing the ever evolving experience your company provides will have them feeling invested. But most importantly they will feel an emotional shift; which is the only way
The Female Car Buying Experience: Journey Through Her Eyes
Why does it matter; why should you tailor the brand experience to the Decision Maker; the woman? Besides the fact that women are the original social media, sharing their stories of outstanding experiences and happenings in life with just about anyone that will listen, they have now been given a platform to spread their message far and wide, and the whole world is listening. On the opposite end of exceptional experiences an inconsistent and disjointed experience (which is what most women receive when shopping for a vehicle); women will share these stories with the same passion as they do the good ones. Women are also the Chief Purchasing Officer in their home and are the number one referral source. Carl Sewell, the author of Customers for Life, states that the lifetime value of a customer equates to $517,000. By not curating an experience for the female buyer not only are you losing her lifetime value, but you are also losing the potential of her referral network, and with the social platform she is handed; Ms. Social will let the world know her opinions on a massive scale. Let’s face it; although we would like to have seen a more significant shift in gender equality through the years, there hasn’t been a huge leap forward. 85% of the world’s executives are still men, and in the car industry, men hold over 80% of the positions within dealerships. This means that the car shopping experience is still designed by men, for men, and delivered by men. The urgency to flip the lens, put ourselves in the shoes of the world’s most influential consumers and create standards that help sales associates create an experience that lives up to her expectations is even more prevalent as women will walk away and choose another dealer to purchase from. Want to know why it’s important to focus on her experience? The female consumer has a direct impact on your top line and future success! Here are five tips to tailor your brand experience to the Decision Maker; The Woman. 1. Understand the Decision Maker. It’s important to remember when creating a Consumer Persona for the female consumer that she wants to be understood first as a woman and second as a consumer. Flip the lens, understand your consumer’s life stages in order to tailor and personalize the experience you offer. 2. Journey through her eyes. Once you have a 30,000-foot view of the female consumers that shop with you it’s time to break down the journey from her perspective. Perception is the customer’s reality. When designing a program for the female consumer (or any consumer or employee), it is imperative that the experience is designed from their point of you. The golden rule that grandma preached; treat others the way you want to be treated is a thing of the past. You must live by the platinum rule; treat others the way they need or want to be treated. 3. Create real relationships. One of the most significant differences between male and female consumers is that women WANT to create a relationship with the sales associate; whereas men could go either way. In a recent study I lead, 69% of the female participants said that the sales associate didn’t take time to get to know her, the same 69% also said that they didn’t trust the sales associate. Women crave connection. Her decisions are driven by the way she feels about you, your brand and the experience you provide. 4. Train for EQ. If a team member has high EQ, they will be able to execute tip 2 & 3, without this creating a real relationship and a tailored experience becomes very tough. It’s important to have the skills and knowledge to do the job; however, we can train most of these skills. One of the top reasons women walk out of dealerships is because they don’t like the way they were approached or treated. Those with high EQ can read people’s nonverbal cues and can adjust their approach based on the needs of each consumer. 5. Be consistent. As I have mentioned, building a trust account with your female consumer base is extremely important when it comes to her desire to purchase a vehicle and refer you. Consistency is a key factor in the trust she has in you. Each one of these tips will help to create an experience that will promote a female-friendly environment and increase the number of females shopping in your dealership, which untimely will increase your CSI results on all fronts.
Lack of Constancy Kills Trust
I had just arrived home from speaking at a conference, and had a 24 hour turn around before I needed to get back on another plane to coach 200+ leaders. As a frequent guest on Air Canada air crafts, I experience jet lag on a regular basis. However, this instance was a particularly intense case (given the 10 flights I had taken within the last 15 days). I went to check in to my flight to San Juan and was offered an upgrade to business class for a small fee. Feeling tired and wanting to be pampered on my 5+ hour flight, I opted in to the upgrade. I entered all the appropriate information only to get a message stating that the upgrade was no longer available. Disappointed (and knowing that technology isn’t always reliable) I exited out of the Air Canada App and tried again; no bueno. Same message. I was running around trying to complete some errands before my Saturday morning flight, and didn’t have the time or patience to deal with this. I did however want comfort, so I called customer service. The Call for Help I called into the elite customer service line, which had a 22 minute wait time; I opted to be called back. Once I got the call back, the young man on the other end asked how he could help. I proceeded to tell him my situation and without a pause he said he could not help me. Just like that- there is nothing I can do for you. “Try again” he said “maybe on a computer this time,” and with that, the conversation was over. So I tried again. No success. You can imagine how frustrated I felt at this point. I couldn’t give them my money and all I wanted was some help. The Bad Outweighs the Good It is said that it takes 12 positive interactions to make up for one negative interaction. From a customer stand point, each time there is a service failure you have to work 12x harder to make up for it. Let’s count how many negative interactions I had in this one instance with Air Canada technology and personnel: two tries on a faulty app, a phone call with no help, care, or compassion, and another 5 attempts on my computer. That is a total of 8 negative interactions with this brand in one afternoon. At this point my trust account with Air Canada was in the negative. When you are in service recovery mode, it is so important that you make it right the first time to regain the trust of your customer. Unfortunately technology doesn’t always work, yet it replaces the need for human interference and correction. Is your team prepared to help when technology fails? A Second Call Now I was angry, so I did what any other customer would do; call the customer service line again thinking there must be a way to make the upgrade on their end. Another 25 minute wait, and I finally got in touch with a lovely customer service representative. She was delightful and very helpful. She listened, said she was sorry, and worked every back-end possibility to help me. Finally, I had success! She was able to secure my upgrade, charge me, and email the confirmation all in a friendly and genuine manner. When I hung up the phone I couldn’t help but ask myself; why couldn’t the first customer service representative do that for me? He would’ve saved me hours of frustration and kept my trust with the brand intact. Lessons to Learn from this Story As a customer experience expert in designing and training CX programs, the answer came quite quickly to me; there is a lack of consistency in the hiring, training, and delivery of their service recovery program. Here are a few take-a-ways that will help you increase your customer’s trust in your brand. 1. Develop a Service Recovery System Service Recovery is an integral part of the guest’s experience; how we handle a service failure is equally as important as delivering your brand standards. Service Recovery is a thought-out, well planned process that returns dissatisfied customers to a state of satisfaction and trust with your brand. Your service Recovery System should also be an experience just as your primary brand standards are. The goal: to have your customers be delighted with the memory of the fix; so much so that they can’t even remember the problem. 2. Train for Consistency Consistency will set you apart from your competition. On the flip side, inconsistency can kill the trust your customers have with your brand. Keeping in mind that it takes 12 positive interactions to make up for one negative interaction, it is in your company’s best interest to ensure consistency in the delivery of your brand standards and service recovery system. Had Air Canada’s first customer service representative done what the second one did for me I would have been delighted, and trust would have remained intact. We live in a fast paced world filled with inconsistency; to keep your customer’s trust and loyalty, you must give them what the rest of the world doesn’t. You need to be reliable and consistent. 3. Follow up If you want to show you care and truly wow your customers, follow up with them to ensure they are satisfied and thank them for their loyalty. Showing you care goes a long way in restoring a customer’s trust and faith in your brand, yet it is a step in the customer service recovery journey that is most often overlooked. If you want to keep your customer’s trust after a service failure, then you must develop a service recovery system that your people will have no problem consistently delivering; every customer, every time.
Experiential Branding Matters Because “She” is the Influencer
Do you remember the first time you fell in love? I remember the first time I fell in love. I was 15 years old and was head over heels for my hockey player boyfriend. Right before I would meet him, I could feel the butterflies in my stomach, my sweaty palms, the goosebumps on my arms, when I felt the excitement walk around the corner of our high school hallway. Do you remember similar feelings of falling in love for the first time? Because if you do, then you understand the way your customers feel when they fall in love with your brand! The chemical reactions that happen inside you when falling in love are the same chemical reactions women have while shopping. It’s simple; it’s science! Let me lead you through the journey to falling in love… As a women-centric business, you want women to fall in love with your brand and emotionally attach themselves to your brand. There are three chemicals that are released inside a woman’s body when she is shopping: Dopamine Serotonin Oxytocin Well, for those who don’t know, these are the same chemicals released when you fall for someone! 1. Dopamine According to Harvard University, dopamine is a chemical produced by our brain that plays a starring role in motivating behavior. It gets released when we take a bite of delicious food, when we have sex, after we exercise, and, importantly, when we have successful social interactions. In an evolutionary context, it rewards us for beneficial behaviors and motivates us to repeat them. When your experience focuses on the interaction a female consumer has with you, Dopamine is released. This chemical release leads to her desire to repeat these repetitive interactions with your brand. Shopping is, indeed, addictive! 2. Serotonin Serotonin is also known as the “happiness chemical”, which plays a role in how a person feels about things. Creating an experience that stimulates happy feelings will, in turn, stimulate the release of Serotonin. The goal here is to send a woman on a journey filled with positive stimuli. This way she feels happy throughout her experience with your brand. 3. Oxytocin Oxytocin (the bonding hormone) is released the same way while shopping as it does when falling in love. This hormone affects women more rigorously. Women want to connect with your brand and when you take the experience you offer to one step further and create a relationship with your consumers, you are entering a bonding zone. Once she has bonded with your brand, she is bound to be fiercely loyal. Why do you want the decision maker (she) to fall in love with your brand? So why should you take out time to tailor your Consumer Brand Experience for female consumers? Women are the Chief Purchasing Officers for their households and the most influential consumers in the world. According to Inclusionary Leadership Group, Women influence 83% of all consumer spending in the United States, which is worth $7 trillion annually. Not only do they hold the veto vote on the majority of purchasing decisions, but also can be your number one referral source! Most businesses don’t take this customer segment seriously and do not invest in enough resources to tailor the experience a woman receives when doing business with them. Further, according to author Bridget Brennen, men make up 85% of the executives of the world! This gap between who buys and who designs the customer experience is enormous. The brand experience is ultimately created by men who are physiologically different from women. It’s about the chase! I am going to let you in on a little secret; it’s not about the product she buys. What matters is the journey she takes when she interacts with your brand. It is the chase she enjoys! It is about the little moments when she connects with your brand and creates a relationship with you that dictates whether or not she’ll choose to do business with you again. Much like the notation of ‘Retail Therapy’, women tend to go out when they are having a bad day or feeling down for some retail therapy. I know this is something that is made fun of in movies and books, but there is some truth to it. Women feel better when they journey through a mall, they get little hits of dopamine and release of serotonin; turning their not so great day into a better one (until she gets her credit card bill that is!) Brands can learn from this habit of retail therapy. She will have hits of dopamine and serotonin and if you do a really good job, she will start to create a bond with your brand. Examining the journey your female consumer takes with your brand and tweaking it to include all the little moments that make her fall in love with your product or service is in your best interest! How women’s buying behavior is different from those of men? There are behavioral differences between men and women and their expectations from interacting with the brand. These differences can be scientifically linked to the physiological differences between men and women. Both the genders are different and it’s up to you to identify how to tailor an experience that works for both men and women. In my experience, if you build a brand experience, keeping women in mind, men should be ok with it. However, if you build an experience for the male customer, the female consumer will not like it in the slightest. I always urge my clients to build their experience with the woman in mind. Research shows the size of a female’s limbic brain (the part of the brain that controls emotions and memory) is double the size of a man’s brain. We don’t make decisions based on logic; rather, we make decisions based on our feelings. Drawing physiological differences between men and women are important. Women need to feel good about interacting with your brand. Conversations are the glue
Choosing to Lead in Life and Business
In life you are almost always faced with a choice. A choice to do this…or that. Here’s the thing, the choice is always yours and yours alone. The same goes for businesses and leaders alike. As leaders and businesses grow, you will be, and probably are, faced with adversity as you make the treacherous climb toward significance, and ultimately toward leaving a legacy for your successors. I have been faced with so many choices where I have had to decide to go one way or another. Some choices haven’t always been in my favour, and haven’t always been the right choices to make; however, I have always come out ahead. I have let the forks in the road serve as moments of transformation to the next ledge on the uphill climb called life. As I write this, I feel very humbled. I want to share with you the choices I have made, all in which have molded me into the person I am today as a wife, mom, and business owner who is eternally grateful for all of the times I should’ve turned left and decided to turn right. I am an ordinary person living an extraordinary life. I have always dreamed big, bigger than most have said I should. I have always believed that something is a reality before it is, and then worked extremely hard at making the crazy dreams of mine real. As all of us do, I have many stories of roadblock after roadblock put in front of me, and have faced the choice to remain still or move that obstacle in front of me. Many times, I have felt like giving up, and almost have. So many instants have had me surrendering to my limiting beliefs about myself; I can’t do this, I’m not good enough, I’m not smart enough, and the worst, I’m not as good as (insert multiple names here). Luckily, I continued to make the choice to evolve and not let life’s circumstances cripple me or disarm my growth. In Life We can’t control the family we are born into; we don’t get to deal that hand in life. We don’t always have control over the circumstances we face, but what we do have control over are the choices we make to either sink or swim; we choose how we react to the cards we are dealt. We may not always be able to choose what fork in the road is placed in front of us, but we sure as hell get to choose the outcome. As a little girl, I lived in a home riddled with alcohol abuse (a form of addiction that affects one in five children in North America, and many suffer in silence as I did). At a very young age, I was forced with a choice to let the cards I was dealt swallow me whole or to forge through them and take control of my outcome. I chose to stay up every night to make sure my dad didn’t fall asleep with a Colt in his hand, making sure the house didn’t go up in flames. I chose to get up every morning while everyone was sleeping to make sure he was still in bed where I left him, but most importantly I chose to view the world in a positive light. I developed a belief over the years that people do what they know best at the time, and that forgiveness is the key to your own freedom, while choice is the key to theirs. It has been a choice to love unconditionally, and to give without expectation. What I didn’t realize was how grateful I would be for having to have made these choices. As a young girl, I didn’t realize how much this would help me to help others in the future. I didn’t realize the positive impact these dark moments would have on my ability to lead both in life, and business. In Business In life and business, you will always have to choose. I have discovered that one of the hardest choices you will make will be whether you will lead in life and business, or stay stuck and repeat old familiar habits. Will you choose to evolve and grow, making choices that aren’t always easy, but may be the right direction for you, your family, team members, or customers? As a leader in life and business, you will have to choose to trust until given reason not to. You will have to choose whether or not you will be vulnerable enough to earn the trust of the people who surround you. You will have to choose between being patient or demanding results, but most importantly you will have a choice to meet your people where they are, believing that they are in fact doing the best that they know how in that moment. Choose to ask yourself: what can you do differently to help them know more, so they can do more. I wasn’t always looked at as an inspirational leader, or a person to look to for leadership advice. It took a lot of honest feedback, tears, self-reflection, and personal growth to be able to type the words on this page, or work with organizations to develop their leaders. It is such an honor to be able to inspire positive actionable change in organizations, and the lives of the people that keep those organizations growing. I know this post is not giving you the ‘how to’ you are probably expecting. I will, however, share with you one of the most powerful lessons I have learnt through the choices I have made, with the cards I have been dealt. I have learnt that in order to lead an organization and its people to success, you must start first with how you choose to show up in life. What will you choose? In order to lead in business, you must lead in your life, and be willing to help
Have Your Cake and Eat It Too In 2019
Dear ladies of all ages, races, occupations, and stages in life: I am writing you to give you a gift for 2019. This is one of the most powerful gifts anyone can ever give you. I was once given this gift and it changed my life; I hope it does the same for you. I am giving you PERMISSION to take flight and to have your cake and eat it too. I am giving you PERMISSION to live your best life. I am giving you PERMISSION to be you! What Does it Mean to Have your Cake and Eat it Too? This is going to mean something different for everyone. But what I am giving you permission to do is live the best life for you, without having to sacrifice or give up something in order to do this. I am a mom of three (eight-year-old twins and a five-year-old), a business owner, a daughter, sister, wife; oh, I almost forgot to mention I am a person too! I have spent most of my life constantly giving to everyone else. I didn’t have much of a childhood as I lived in a family that suffered with alcohol abuse. At a really young age, I had to take care of my sister, my brother, my mom, and my dad. When I say that I gave all of myself to everyone else, I truly mean it. Fast forward to my 25th year of life; I got married and had twins at 26. That’s a story all on its own; I almost died on August 2nd 2010 when I brought my twins into the world. My liver was failing, my blood platelets diminished, and I was bleeding out internally. Eleven months after my husband and I said ‘I do’ he had to sign papers stating that his wife would not make it out of the emergency C-section delivering two premature babies. The twins were born weighing approximately 3lbs, two months early, and their mom didn’t wake up for four days. I woke up and with no time to recover, I had to move into being a mom for two little beings that I visited in the Nicu while, I, myself was in the hospital. As you can imagine, being a young mom wasn’t easy (jeze, being a mom isn’t easy) and having twins was hard. I moved from taking care of my parents and siblings in one chapter of my life into the second chapter of life; motherhood with no break in-between. Happily, our babies are no longer babies and are thriving. We were crazy enough to have another little girl, and I am glad to report that she went full term with no complications (other than being 10lbs at birth!). Our little family of four was now a family of five, and that meant more tender love and care for everyone except, me. As I type this, I can see many of the moms out there understanding what I mean by that last statement. Fast forward two years; my father got very ill, and being the person that I am, I talked my husband into letting him stay with us until he was well enough to be on his own. For those of you who know me, you would know how difficult this was as my father and I did not have a relationship for a multitude of reasons of which I may blog about at a later date. A year and a half later my dad moved out; this time in my life tested me and my family to the limits. It was right around the time my dad moved out that I started to go through a shift, and that shift started with a tattoo. I was driving out to a routine doctor’s appointment, and on my way, I saw a tattoo parlor. I pulled over, went in, got my tattoo, and proceeded to my doctor’s appointment. My tattoo (shown in the image of this blog) is of three little black birds taking flight. This symbolizes my three children, and the point in my life where I was done being everything to everyone except myself. Three years ago, on that afternoon, I decided it was time for a new chapter in my story; Katie takes flight! So many wonderful things have happened since that day. I started to take care of myself, started a speaking and training career, opened my own business, and became a more present mom. Changing who I am and what people were used to was (and is) a hard, turbulent path. It was time though, time for me to figure out how to have my cake and eat it too. Here is what I have learned along this bumpy path: The Cards You’ve Been Dealt Don’t Dictate Your Future The cards you’ve been dealt do not have to be an excuse for why your life is the way it is; they can be a catalyst for the life you want to live. You can decide to let your current circumstance swallow you whole or use it, learn from it, and propel yourself forward because of it. Being Selfish is Necessary It’s not easy being ‘selfish’ as a mom (or person in general) but it is very necessary in order to be able to give to others. As the safety demonstration on an airplane dictates to put your oxygen mask on before you help others, it is necessary to breathe life into your being before you can truly give to others. Your Change Isn’t Easy for Others Not everyone is going to love the change you make, and that is ok. If you have decided to put yourself first, or take on a new challenge, new career, or lease on life, you will have resistance from those who surround you; you are not only changing your world, you are also changing theirs. It is ok to put distance between you and the people in your life
Your LinkedIn Connections Want the Best for you in 2019!
It is Christmas eve, I am sitting in my office tying off a few loose ends so I can truly enjoy the moments to come over the next few (hectic) days, and as I was reviewing a post for LinkedIn, I came across a post that I put out a few months ago. I asked the LinkedIn community to share advice they had for the community in four words or less. This morning when I came across this post, I scrolled through to look at how many wonderful people shared their advice for others to see. I was overwhelmed with a humbling feeling, and decided as we all slow down in 2018 and gear up for 2019, that I would pull all these magical words of wisdom together for you to read and decide how you will be your best self in the year to come. Words of Wisdom From your Fellow LinkedIn Community Just keep on going. Be more present! Just don’t quit. Be true to you. Never jeopardize your integrity. Be the change. There is no spoon. Collect great people. Paint vision with passion. Roll with the punches. Be positive. Keep moving forward. Stay true to you. Focus on what matters Get off your arse. Live more! Die less! (Clarification: die is every time you say no to yourself and those around you that you love). Praise publicly – Reprimand privately. Work hard. Be nice. Love always wins respect. Know what you want. Give thanks each day. Be focused, but adaptable. Focus on the intention. Trust your gut. Live your life well. Enjoy every little moment. Firm foundations create heroes! Find beauty in everyday. Be yourself & never surrender. Live & let live. Keep your eye on the ball. Do not give up. And as I gear up for 2019, I will be focusing on self-love, strengthening who I am at the core, and helping organizations and women around the world be the best version of themselves by transforming the experiences people have with each other, and the businesses they interact with. In order to do that, my advice for myself (and those who are reading) is to forgive often and be open. We need to forgive ourselves more often, forgive those around us as they stumble, and realize that we are only human. It is not what you do or what happens to you, it is how you react that determines the outcome. Being vulnerable to forgiveness opens up your world to countless opportunities. Be open to the challenges, opportunities, and changes that 2019 brings. Be your best self by believing in you, and everything you uniquely bring to the world. Cheers to you and your growth in 2019! Xo Katie
Five Tips to Providing a Five Star Experience
The best way I can describe ‘customer service’ is by using the word transaction. ‘Service’ is what we do, it is a product or the transaction to receive the product. According to dictionary.com an experience is: “a particular instance of personally encountering or undergoing something: or the observing, encountering, or undergoing of things generally as they occur in the course of time.” In other words, an experience is an interaction between a business and a customer that happens while the customer journeys through your business. So, What is a Five-Star Experience? A five-star experience is often noted as ‘luxurious’ or ‘expensive,’ maybe even unattainable to most organizations. In actuality, a five-star experience has nothing to do with cost or luxury at all. A five-star experience can be achieved in any organization regardless of the industry, but requires your people to be…well, nice people! It requires the use of emotional intelligence and very little investment, essentially turning the transactional service currently being provided into an interactional experience that customers will enjoy and remember. Here are five tips to create a five-star experience! 1. Use a Friendly Tone of Voice We’ve all heard the adage ‘It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it,’ right? This couldn’t be more important or true when it comes to the customer’s experience. How we verbally send a message will dictate how the customer receives the message. When interacting with customers, it is very important to watch the tone of your voice. This is especially important when conversing with a customer on the phone. They can’t see your expressions, but they can hear if you are smiling or not. Practice roleplaying with your team, give them a scenario, and focus on the tone of their voice. 2. Use Their Name “A person’s name is to him or her the sweetest and most important sound in any language.” – Dale Carnage. Using a customer’s name not only shows respect, but is the most important word you can use to create a connection with your customer. You’ll read a lot about using the customer’s name in articles written about how to provide a personalized experience. Often it is the hardest for employees to execute. Here’s the thing, the customer doesn’t expect you to somehow magically know their name. They do, however, expect you to use it as soon as you get it, and once you know it, use it often. 3. Show Genuine Interest We make decisions out of the ‘feelings we have’ not the facts and figures that are presented to us. Humans crave connection and will stop doing business with you if 1. No one attempts to make a connection and 2. If a person is disingenuous when trying to make a connection. Customers want you to authentically engage and show interest in them. The 80/20 rule applies here. Let the customer talk 80% of the time because you have spent 20% of the time with them asking questions and showing genuine interest. Doing this will only set you up for success, as you will now be able to anticipate their needs. 4. Be Anticipatory A customer doesn’t want to have to work hard to get their needs met when undergoing an experience. It is your job to anticipate the needs of your customers and know what they want or need before they tell you. Paying attention to what they say and remembering their preferences will help your team anticipate your customer’s needs. 5. Be Knowledgeable Last, but not least, you must be the expert in what you do and the product you provide your customers. I’m not talking about knowing the bare minimum about your product or service, but to know more than what the customer knows about your product or service. When providing a five-star experience, you must know more than what is printed on marketing material, your website, or social channels. The customer has already looked at all those avenues and has decided to do business with you! When they walk through your doors and ask a question, they want to hear what they haven’t already read or heard about already. Becoming an expert and matching your knowledge to the needs of your customer will go a long way in establishing creditability and trust. A five-star experience can be achieved in any organization regardless of the industry, but requires your people to be genuine, anticipatory, knowledgable, and friendly. Transforming your mind set (and that of your team) from customer ‘service’ to customer ‘experience’ will also aide in the execution of these insights, and take your customer experience to the next level.
A Purpose Driven Culture
I had the honour of attending the Celebrity Edge Naming Ceremony and Global Conference this past week. It was an overwhelming wave of emotions spread out over an eight-day period. There was one common theme that was weaved throughout the entire experience, and that was the sheer purpose, passion, and pride that each individual had for this company. As I sat in the audience on the last day of the conference while the President and CEO gave her closing remarks, tears of pride flowed down my cheeks. Pride toward being part of an organization that stands for so much more than great results. Pride toward the gratitude she had for every single person that contributes to their success, and pride toward her belief that extraordinary people can achieve extraordinary things; making the impossible possible. Purpose, Passion, and Pride I have read many great business books that try to describe the difference between good companies and extraordinary companies; all of which describe how organizations like Amazon, Apple, and Zappos deliver exceptional experiences and results for their employees, customers, and shareholders. This past week gave me a first-hand experience of an organization that not only yields great results, but one that has depth, inspiration and a culture unlike any other. In the moments I got to watch, listen, and speak on stage, it dawned on me that it is the purpose of an organization that creates one common goal. It is the Passion of its people that unites each individual employee into one team, and it is the pride of this team that propels them to do what needs to be done to garner success. A Purpose Driven Culture If you have set out to achieve extraordinary results, then you will want to reflect on the culture of your organization. Ask yourself; Do you have a clearly defined purpose? Are your people passionate about your purpose? And does your team live your purpose with pride? Below is why each one of these areas are so important in developing a culture that is unified around one goal, and a team that works as one to achieve these goals. Purpose Why a company does what it does is far more important than the results it yields. It is the purpose that drives these results and the people’s belief in the organization. A strong purpose allows an organization to go beyond typical success; it is the path of significance. If you want your organization to leave a mark on this world, then drive your decisions through your purpose. Having an unwavering purpose not only takes a company down a path to significance, it’s a single focus for all employees to rally around and be passionate about. It is your purpose that will draw in the right employees that will work harder for you, that will promote you and be brand evangelists. A company’s purpose creates a common goal that all team members will work to achieve. Passion An unnerving passion to drive the purpose of the company creates a unified team. I have always said, a leader without followers is just someone taking a walk; a company without purpose and passion will struggle to create followers and achieve significance or even success. Hire those that are passionate about why you do what you do. Influence and inspire them to drive your purpose and create one team that is focused on one goal. Passion is the fire that ignites your company’s purpose. Do you have passionate people willing to walk behind you? Pride Being part of something bigger than yourself is an exhilarating feeling. Being part of a team that is working together to achieve a purpose causes an individual to be proud of what they are contributing to. Pride for what they do and who they do it for is the start of creating brand evangelists. When a team is proud of the results they achieve for a company that embodies a common purpose, they tend to work harder, longer, and more purposefully. It is the pride someone has for their work that turns a team into a family, and a culture like that is unstoppable. Are your team members proud to work for you or your organization? Do you have brand evangelists? One Goal, One Team If you want to achieve extraordinary results, then you must build a culture driven by purpose, passion, and pride. As those tears streamed down my face, I realized just how lucky I was to be part of an organization that is driven by purpose first, cultivates passion within the hearts of its people, and nurtures a sense of pride in everything they do. If you want to set out to make the impossible possible, start with a Purpose Driven Culture.
Watch Out! Women are Dominating the Roads.
I recently read a great article As Sexy Cars Take The LA Spotlight, Women Take The American Wheel where the author Micheline Maynard spoke about the steady influence of the female consumer, not only on the purchase of vehicles (or the decision to purchase,) but also that women drivers now outnumber male drivers. The auto industry has been aware for quite some time of the fact that close to 95% of auto dealers are men, yet women influence over 80% of the decision to purchase a vehicle when in a coupled relationship. The male-dominated industry has typically designed cars from their point of view, and on top of that, they have created the experience the female consumer receives in the dealership from the same viewpoint. This is a massive disconnect which highlights the enormous gaps in both the design of vehicles and the shopping experience the most influential consumer in the world receives. Women are not only growing in dominance in the workforce, often out-earning their husbands, but they also dominate the road too! I’ll let the experts at Turecar.com give you the insights on the type of vehicles the female consumer is purchasing, and I will provide you with ideas on how to deliver an experience once she walks into your dealership. To close the gap on the experience that is currently provided in dealerships and what women want, here are five tips to consider when serving the decision maker; the woman. 1. Greet Her In an independent study I conducted I found that when a woman is shopping with a man, the man is greeted first 100% of the time. The greeting is the first interaction that will set the tone for the entire journey; it is a customer’s favourite pick up line. Try greeting her first (or at least at the same time). The female consumer will feel like an equal, respected, and open for the journey she is about to experience. 2. Use Her Name “A person’s name is to him or her the sweetest and most important sound in any language.”- Dale Carnage. Using a customer’s name not only shows respect but is the most important words you can use to create a connection with your customer. A female customer gravitates even more to the use of her name. Over the decades, women have fought to be equal with their male counterpart, so using her name is a great way to help her feel welcome, respected, and important in your dealership. 3. Show Genuine Interest We make decisions out of the ‘feelings we have’ not the facts and figures that are presented to us. Women crave connection and will walk out of your dealership if 1. No one attempts to make a connection and 2. If a person is disingenuous when trying to make a connection. She wants you to take time to get to know her; genuinely. The 80/20 rule applies here. Let her talk 80% of the time because you have spent 20% of the time with her asking questions and showing genuine interest in her. 4. Be Authentic Being authentic appropriately follows showing real interest. The female consumer wants to create a relationship with the sales associate, and she expects the interaction to be authentic. You will have much more success winning the heart of your female consumer by being authentic, revealing vulnerabilities and of course showing genuine interest in her. 5. Follow Up The last touchpoint on a customer’s journey is often viewed as the ‘goodbye’ or ‘lasting impression’ which leaves the touch point of ‘following up’ as a big opportunity! You would think in the automotive industry we would know the importance of following up to ‘close the sale.’ Funny enough it is overlooked a lot! The follow up is an excellent opportunity to strengthen the relationship you have created with your female consumers. This time allows you to continue to show genuine interest, be authentic, and increase the likelihood of getting her back into the dealership. Here is the catch. The follow up doesn’t have to be just about the vehicle she was looking at, or that is coming up for renewal. The follow up is way more successful if you couple it with a personal touch like remembering a birthday, anniversary, or big event. Show you care, and she will follow up with a visit to your dealership. The end goal is always to sell a vehicle; we are in business after all. However, this is a result of how you treat your customers. Focus on ‘how’ you can close the gap between the current experience design by men, for men, and delivered by men, and the experience the most influential consumer expects. If you focus on how you and your team will live up to her expectations, then the results will follow.