Southern hospitality

They say when you treat a customer right he'll tell one person but when you treat him wrong he'll tell ten. Or thousands.

Your friends may tell you about the terrible waiter they had or their bad hotel stay. But you don't often hear the good experiences. But I did hear one the other day about Southern States.

My friend was purchasing a piece of yard equipment. While still in the store, an employee came up, opened the box and started filling out the registration and warranty card for her. She asked why.

He said: "We've found most people don't take the time to do it once they get the product home. So we take care of it for them."

My friend replied: "Well I know where I'm coming next time I need something."

To which he replied "I can't tell you how many times we hear that."

When so many companies are trying to cut corners, those willing to go the extra mile can really stand out.

Do you have "broken windows?"

I stumbled onto this article called Broken Windows the other day. I highly recommend it as a way to think about the little details of each customer interaction.

How Dewey find books?

As the amount of content on websites continues to expand, you hear a lot more about taxonomies these days. Basically a taxonomy is nothing more than a classification system - a way to group and organize your content.

I was in a public library the other day and was forced to navigate the Dewey Decimal System, one of the world's most famous taxonomies. The thought that came over me was "If this is so great, why don't bookstores use it?" Or, alternatively, with bookstores like Barnes and Noble and Borders geared so efficiently to the needs of the reading customer, why aren't libraries organized the same way?

Turns out that, in at least one place, they are.

A parking lot issue

Have you ever been out shopping and seen a parking spot for the "Employee of the Month?" It's often right up front and I guess it's supposed to recognize and reward that employee. While it's nice for that one person, what about the store's customers? I guess they can just walk further and fend for themselves.

Some companies' websites reflect this same attitude. Often these websites are more a reflection of internal structure and politics than a service-oriented site focused on the customer.

Of course you want to reward and recognize good employees. But remember, most of your customers don't really care about you - they care about what you can do for them. And without your customers, you wouldn't have any employees.

As a side note, I always liked the special parking they have at Babies R Us stores. They have a dozen or so spots right up front for expectant mothers and new parents. It's a smart strategy that caters to their best customers and makes them feel welcome even before they've set foot in the door.

Customer service (?)

A fascinating, but sobering post from Rob at FasterForward on a new report from Accenture on the perceptions of customer service from customers and executives of the companies providing high-tech support.

It's amazing that some companies still don't see the value in taking care of the customer.

You can download the full report here.

Taking care of the customer

In one evening, in ten minutes, I was shown two different examples of businesses taking care of their customers.

First I was in the grocery store, in the checkout line to be specific. I was behind a gentleman who was almost done. Just a couple more items to be scanned and then he would pay and leave. As the cashier tried to scan one of his items - a bottle of saline solution - the product woudn't scan. A sticker had been placed, either by the manufacturer or the store, over the UPC barcode. It was not going to be easy to get off. The cashier quickly flagged down his supervisor and held up the item and asked for help. The supervisor said "that's either $1.79 or $2.49. Let's charge him $1.79 and call it close enough." It was quick and simple. Neither the customer nor I (in line) was bothered by it at all. Yes, maybe the store lost an extra 70 cents they could have made if they told the customer to wait, irked me, got on the microphone, asked for a price check, and basically cost everyone 3 minutes of their lives. Instead, they looked friendly, responsive and flexible.

The second example came about ten minutes later when I walked into my neighborhood Chinese food restaurant. I'm in there about once a week so certain staff members had gotten to know me and they are always nice and polite. But when I walked in this time, I realized they had entered a new era. Instead of taking phone orders on paper receipt tablets as had been the case before, they were typing everything into a computer. They were talking to a customer on the phone and capturing his order, specific requests, his phone number, delivery address, etc. Going forward, they would have a better picture of their clientele, be better able to target their advertising, be able to track order history, etc.

Technology can help a business run more smoothly and efficiently, but ultimately it's how this technology is applied that will determine success. In both cases, the grocery store and the Chinese restaurant seemed to understand that the technology they employ is merely a tool. Taking care of the customer will always be more important.

Hi. Welcome back.

I pulled my car into a nearby Jiffy Lube the other day. I parked and walked into the office. As I entered, the gentlemen working there greeted me with a "Mr. Evans?" Having never been there before, I was more than a little surprised. But they had typed my license plate into their system and recognized me as a previous customer at a different Jiffy Lube location. They had my car's maintenance history on the screen and were better prepared to do business with me.

The best bartenders and baristas recognize their repeat customers and have their "usuals" waiting for them before they are fully in the door.

Amazon remembers your browsing and order history and makes product recommendations based on it.

Many sites that require a login offer a "Remember Me" feature to facilitate future visits.

How does your site recognize, reward and retain your best customers?

What can you do for me immediately?

The web is all about instant gratification. Users don't want to watch your flashy splash page. They barely care who you are. The question is what can you do for them? Can you entertain them? Fulfill a need? Make their lives easier in some way? Can you provide value? "What have you done for me lately" has been replaced on the web with "What can you do for me immediately?"

The Internet and other technological advancements have ushered in an Era of Now. Customers want service and information. Now. We want pay at the pump. We want debit cards and instant messaging. We want 24-hour banking, GPS navigation and self-checkout. We want the Easy Button.

The bar has been raised for customer service too. No longer is getting back to a customer in "2-3 business days" good enough. Companies are adding features like real-time chat to their sites to engage the customer and facilitate the online experience.

The layout and usability of your site needs to take this "user attitude" into account. How could you streamline the navigation to highlight your most important areas? How could you improve your users' satisfaction? What would you want to see if you were the customer?

The new rule is simple: Make it easier, faster, cheaper for your customers to do business with you, or they will take their business to someone who will.