That Certain Special Something...

As I’ve said many times before, ‘customer satisfaction’ is not my favorite term. It implies that your goal is for people to walk away feeling ‘OK’, but not amazed… Satisfied, but not so excited they want to tell all their friends. If you really want to take a leap to the next level I urge you to go for the ‘wow factor’ and look beyond simple satisfaction.

The Virgin Group, launched 40 years ago by Sir Richard Branson, has become one of he most powerful and iconic organizations on the face of the earth by adhering to one simple principle – let’s give the customer some FUN! That lighthearted commitment to joy and unparalleled quality, as well as the less tangible elements of surprise and genuine concern for people, helped Virgin hit $1 billion in sales faster than any other company ever launched.


How can you leverage the ‘wow factor’ to build your own business? Understand a few basic principles and you’re well on your way:

Mediocrity is bad. The middle of the pack can seem like a safe place to be. You play off of your competitors, mimic other products and services, match your pricing to the market and try not to stand out. The problem with that strategy is that customers won’t see you as any different from the next guy. They won’t pay attention to your brand, respond to your promotions or tell other people about you. Today’s competitive climate is fierce, and if you choose to play it safe and accept mediocrity someone more memorable will easily edge you out.

What you like doesn’t matter – what your customer likes does! Most business owners get hung up on their own agenda and preferences. It’s human nature… ‘I love the color fuchsia –let’s use that!’… ‘Who wouldn’t want a lipstick dispenser in their car?’… ‘We all shop online so a retail presence is pointless.’ Take the time to get to know your customer intimately and to give them what they want. Go a step farther and think beyond their conscious desires to create amazing experiences and exemplary products that they would never even have thought of.

Take the ‘wow factor’ to the front lines. If you know and adhere to your customer commitment religiously and your staff, distributors and vendors don’t, you’re setting yourself up to fail. In order to create a truly stellar customer experience, you have to pull everyone into the vision. From the receptionist who answers your phone, to the sales staff, to the retail clerk, to your distribution channels… everyone has to understand the power of ‘wow’ and work hard to exceed customer expectations. At the end of the day, companies are just big groups of people working together towards a common aim. Make sure your team is all about ‘wow’!

Respect the value of loyalty. All a business really has to bank on is its customer base. You may have intellectual property you’ve created, but if no one buys it - who cares? You may have a highly educated staff, but if they can’t make money and you can’t pay them – who cares? You may have a beautiful facility, but if no ones comes in – who cares? Your customers are the lifeblood of your business and everything you do must revolve around their experience with you. Share your vision with customers. Communicate with them. Offer opportunities to interact. And never, ever break your brand promises.

Quantify the promotional power of ‘wow’. That certain special something you create is a very valuable commodity in your business world. Competitors can copy your products, offer similar services, mimic your ads and raise more capital, but the one thing they can never steal from you is your ability to deliver an exceptional experience to your customers every time. They cannot usurp your relationship with people who are passionate about your brand. The ‘wow factor’ negates the need to pay a pretty penny for marketing, it keeps your staff happy, it helps you innovate without endless investment in R&D, it keeps people coming back and talking about you. Make no mistake… wow is not fluff – wow is priceless.

Survival Key #1: Become a Problem Solver

Obviously, the global economy is down and the U.S. is in a recession... but how is your economy? Just because a lot of your competitors, business partners and friends are struggling doesn't mean you have to.

Win at the survival game by preparing rather than panicking... by channeling your energy outward rather than inward. The first key to jolting your business out of panic-mode is to switch your focus back to the customer.

Many companies forget at times that they exist solely to solve problems for people. And although a temporary loss of momentum during an economic upswing may not do much damage - it's a company killer during a recession.

Avoid the trap by remembering your crucial role as a problem solver, and taking the time to slow down and look at each and every transaction from the customer's point of view. Before you try to make another sale or call on the next customer, look at the real world, so you can develop real ideas and relevant answers for both consumers and for yourself.

Analyze your reality, and compare it to their reality. Before you run one more ad, visit one more potential distributor or move any farther in creating a new product, you have to know what the total situation is. In order to understand consumers, relate to them, help them, serve them and, ultimately, sell them, you have to get inside their head. Of course your long-term goal is selling, but in these times, "closing deals” may be the last item on a long list.

Don’t make the fatal mistake of just defining your own situation and obsessing about your own problems. You also have to define your customer’s situation, the market situation and your company’s differentiators so that your messaging speaks to people in a language they understand and connects with their needs on a deep level. People are cash-strapped and sick of being pitched by desperate sales people - don't become one of them!

If you are selling a big-ticket item and sales are sluggish, think about the reason why. Maybe such a huge investment is daunting to potential customers even though they need and want what you are selling? Maybe installation is a barrier? Maybe concerns about reliability or repairs is creating resistance? Can you offer a better guarantee or free installation to overcome those buying obstacles.

If you are having difficulty collecting on invoices and your cash flow is is causing problems, ask yourself why people aren't paying - or talking. Do customers simply not have the cash? Are they stockpiling out of concern over the future? Your mission is simply solving the problem for them. Can you approach customers and offer payment plans to ease their cash crunch and still keep money flowing in? Can you create a positive incentive to pay on time such as a 5% discount for paying within 14 days?

Such simple strategies... and so obvious once the transactions are examined from the customer's perspective.

I challenge you to share your ideas and thoughts with your customers, so they can become aware of how serious you are about helping them and building your business in a positive way. Doing this will not only demonstrate your professionalism, but will also give your customer's peace of mind - and perhaps a little peace of mind will rub off on you as well.

Problem solving and true consumer understanding will not only set you apart from your competitors (who at this very moment are panicking and merely trying to sell, sell, sell!), but they will also keep your customer relationships strong through difficult times. When times become better - and they always do - you will have earned the loyalty you deserve by being a champion for solutions your customers care about and demonstrating your advocacy for their best interests.

All Systems Grow!

I wrote this article last month for Victory Woman magazine (view at http://www.victorycircles.com/victory-woman-magazine.asp) to examine the process of growing a company from minuscule to massive...

Now, you might say 'I don't want to be MASSIVE, just medium!' Well, that's fine too. But the bottom line is that you follow the same steps and apply the same principles when you go from a sole proprietorship to a staff of five, as when you make the leap from a staff of 100 to a staff of 1000. The scale is certainly different, but several simple keys will open the doors.

Let's look at the 10 keys that will take your systems from slow to 'grow':

1. Have clarity of vision. Why are you in business? What is so great about what you do or make? Why will people want to give you money? If you can't answer these simple questions, you have a huge problem. Clarity = power. If you don't have a vision and a sense of destiny about your company, you won't grow.

2. Think BIGGER than you are. This is a tough one for small business owners. It's very difficult to hold an imaginary image of your company as a thriving conglomerate in your head everyday, but that is what it takes to design processes that accommodate other people and make long view decisions that will take you to the top.

3. Remember that your business is sales. Your business is not the product you manufacture. Your business is not the service you provide. Your real business is marketing and creating the internal capacity to successfully sell and deliver your products and services to a multitude of consumers.

4. Build a strong brand image. Branding is everything. Your products, services, ads, promotional materials, facility and staff all have to project a uniform image that speaks to your target audience. Align your entire business behind a strong brand that resonates with potential customers, and sales will naturally rise.

5. Determine key metrics. You can't move your company forward if you don't know what criteria really matter. Figure out what activities and metrics drive your business and track them with a vengeance. For some it might be weekly client meetings, for others it might be unit sales, for you it might be inventory turn... whatever matters, pay attention to that.

6. Study your finances. All businesses exist to make money. That means that you have to become a financial guru: researching, tracking, studying, sharing and using financial data to guide every decision. Every financial activity (borrowing, investor offerings, budgets, sales targets, ratios, etc.) should be in your head every second of the day.

7. Know your customers. Customers are king. If you don't have any, you won't have a business for long – much less grow. Know who the people are that you are trying to reach and why they will want to invest their hard-earned dollars with you. Design your entire company to meet their needs and please them. Gather their feedback and make customer service a top priority.

8. Become the threat. Many business advisors will tell you to study your competitors, play off their every strategic move and mimic their successes. I disagree. And my advice to you is BECOME THE THREAT. While every smart business owner knows what differentiates him and keeps an eye on the market, the most successful organizations step away from the pack and make their competition worry about them!

9. Create a culture of leadership and accountability. Eventually a growing company will expand beyond your ability to reach into every corner and crevice. In order to grow a business you have to build systems and mentor leaders, so that you can maintain focus on the bigger picture. Create an organizational culture that raises up great leaders, rewards results, and makes it easy for people to do their jobs.

10. WOW people! 'Customer satisfaction' is not my favorite term. It implies that your goal is for people to walk away feeling 'OK', but not amazed... Satisfied, but not so excited they want to tell all their friends. If you really want to take a leap to the next level I urge you to go for the 'wow factor' and look beyond simple satisfaction.