Every customer is to be treasured, so it goes without saying businesses need to do all they can to create a positive customer experience. But all the extra miles you go may well be wasted if you don’t let your customer in on what you’ve done for them.
Here’s a good story to illustrate the point. Renowned United States’ customer service expert, Shep Hyken, attended a business lunch at The Four Seasons Resort in Colorado not so long ago. It was an outstanding meal and the service was exemplary. But for Hyken, there was one small detail that really stood out.
Hyken recounts that a colleague ordered iced tea. As the waitress poured it into his companion’s glass, she explained that the ice cubes were actually made of frozen iced tea, so his drink wouldn’t taste watered down as the cubes melted. It was undoubtedly a clever idea, but so what? Why did Hyken then feel compelled to devote a whole blog page to describing the incident?
Hyken’s point was twofold. First, taking such care to ensure a diner enjoyed their drink to the fullest was in itself deserving of high praise. Applying elaborate attention to detail to every aspect of a meal can take a restaurant out of the mainstream and into the big league. Fair enough.
But more important, according to Hyken, was the fact that the customer was told what had been done to create a positive customer experience for them. Here was a detail which would almost certainly have gone unnoticed otherwise, but the waitress’s simple explanation guaranteed his colleague’s appreciation of the effort the Four Seasons put into ensuring he fully enjoyed his drink. It struck Hyken that many businesses consistently miss a trick by failing to let their customers in on the high levels of care they take in relation to the buying experience.
Your efforts to serve your customer well should never go unnoticed, says Hyken. And the best way to make sure your customer notices? Tell them! Don’t hesitate to state what you’ve done to make the customer interaction the best it can be. One small detail could be the one way you stand out from your competitors; the one way in which your business offering is unique. So why wouldn’t you want to let your customers know what you’ve done?
Will doing so make an impact? Sure it will. The Four Seasons makes a point of telling all its restaurant patrons what it does, Hyken blogs about it to an audience of thousands around the world, and now you’re reading about it here. Make sure to tell your customers about the positive things you’ve done for them in your own business and they’ll spread the word, too.
Shep Hyken has a final piece of advice. Whatever details you think will matter to your customer, make sure they matter to the customer too. If your customer doesn’t benefit in a real and tangible way, it won’t matter what you’ve done or how clever you’ve been.
Take a moment to think about how you can educate your customers about the extra care you take in your dealings with them. Not only will they feel valued, they’ll tell more people they feel valued.