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LEADER’S GUIDE
Overview
This session focuses on helping employees understand that it is no longer enough to just meet or satisfy the business needs of the customer. In order to differentiate yourself and your company, look for opportunities to exceed customer expectations. Use the information below to enhance class discussion.
Review class guidance below.
Roles
Manager – Help employees understand the importance of exceeding customers’ expectations from the standpoint of both the customer and Company.
Employee – Realize that every interaction offers an opportunity to exceed customer expectations. Provide each customer with an “intentional experience” created around the specific needs of the customer and then take it a step further.
Preparation
Gather any Company-specific statistics on customer satisfaction.
Create a list of examples demonstrating how your Company exceeded customer expectations.
Create another list of examples where companies or organizations went beyond customer satisfaction and exceeded their expectations.
All examples should include those actions taken by individual employees or the Company as a whole.
Included below are specific examples of actions taken to exceed customer expectations.
Tide
Immediately following any disaster, establishing basic living conditions for those affected is the top priority. Along with food and shelter, clothing – specifically clean clothing – is essential to any recovery effort. Tide Loads of Hope is a program that provides relief by means of mobile laundromats. Each unit consists of one truck and a fleet of vans that house over 32 energy-efficient washers and dryers capable of cleaning more than 300 loads of laundry per day. Tide employees volunteer to help families in disaster zones by washing, drying and folding their clothes free of charge. Proctor & Gamble, the parent company of Tide, provides the physical and financial resources necessary for the program.
Company website: http://www.tide.com/en-US/index.jspx
Amazon
The United States Postal Service (USPS) raised the price of the first class stamp from 32 cents to 33 cents on January 10, 1999. Amazon.com, which had launched about four years earlier, was looking for ways to differentiate itself from the vast number of e-commerce sites. Amazon saw this price increase as an opportunity to set itself apart in a way that was fully aligned with its vision to “be earth’s most customer centric company.” Shortly after the USPS increase, Amazon began including a note with ten, one-cent stamps in all customer shipments. The note briefly stated that Amazon simply wanted to make their customers’ lives easier.
Company website: http://www.amazon.com/
Think Geek
Think Geek is a website that focuses on “Stuff for Smart Masses.” A few days after a customer abandoned his intended purchase leaving a few items in his online cart, he received the following email.
“Warren,
“Much like Sauron, Timmy has a roving-but-less-evil eye that sees all. And from his home in Mordor (located in Fairfax, Virginia) he saw that you recently fancied our precious.
“And so, humble hobbit, Timmy extends to you the coupon code RING1310@CFHDHB, good for $10 off your order of $60 or more (before shipping).
“It was made with a magic so powerful it can only be destroyed in the scorching fires of Mount Doom from which it was auto-generated! Or it expires on 10/21/2013 at 11:59pm ET. Whichever comes first.”
This is a great example of how a Company can be creative in trying to build a relationship with its customers.
Company website: http://www.thinkgeek.com/
Krispy Kreme (example provided earlier in the course)
Rejection Therapy Day 3 – Ask for Olympic Symbol Doughnuts. Jackie at Krispy Kreme Delivers: http://youtu.be/7Ax2CsVbrX0
Zappos
“On average, Zappos employees answer 5,000 calls a day, and 1,200 e-mails a week (except in the holiday season, when call frequency increases significantly). Call center employees don’t have scripts, and there are no limits on call times. The longest call reported is 10 hours 29 minutes.
“Zappos employees are encouraged to go above and beyond traditional customer service. In particular, after a late night of barhopping and closed room service, [Company Co-CEO Tony] Hsieh bet a Skechers rep that if he called the Zappos hotline, the employee would be able to locate the nearest late-night pizza delivery. The call center employee, although initially confused, returned two minutes later with a list of the five closest late night pizza restaurants. Inc. Magazine notes another example when a woman called Zappos to return a pair of boots for her husband because he died in a car accident. The next day, she received a flower delivery, which the call center rep had billed to the company without checking with her supervisor.
“Zappos often gives “surprise” free upgrades to overnight shipping for customers,though their website reports that delivery will take two to five business days.”
Source: Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zappos.com
Company website: http://www.zappos.com/
AT&T
When Superstorm Sandy battered the densely populated New York City metropolitan area in October 2012, power was disrupted for several days (weeks for some). AT&T, recognizing people’s dependence on their electronic devices, set up temporary mobile charging stations in locations across all five boroughs. These charging stations were available to any resident, free of change and resulted in people being able to stay in touch with loved ones and keep current on the latest information.
As direct result of the Superstorm Sandy response, AT&T partnered with other companies to develop a more permanent solution. AT&T Street Charge is meant to meet the ongoing needs of local residents by providing free solar charging stations throughout the city.
Company website: http://www.att.com
CLASS GUIDE
Getting Started
Open the class by welcoming everyone and following up on the homework assignment. In the last class, they were asked to review the first 6 Tenets that were discussed in the previous sessions and to determine how they could be incorporated into their daily activities more effectively.
Ask: “In what ways have you begun to incorporate the Tenets into your daily
activities? What do you think has been most effective? What has been more challenging that you expected?”
Remember to encourage conversational dialogue by using open-ended questions. Another technique is to say, “Tell me more,” or “Tell me more about that.” Be prepared to share some of your personal thoughts and examples. Refer to the Getting Started sections in Tenet 1 or Tenet 2 for more information.
Introduce the seventh Tenet – Skip Satisfaction, Exceed Expectations
Say, “Today, we will focus on the seventh Tenet – Skip Satisfaction, Exceed Expectations’.”
Ask, “What does this tenet mean to you?”
Main Discussion
Say, “The minimum requirement in order for any company to stay in business is to meet or satisfy customer expectations. Satisfaction is getting what is expected. Customers would have little reason to continue to business with a company without this base level of service. Satisfied implies that the customer is content for the moment. The company risks losing customers to competitors that are better able to satisfy them. Poor service could potentially cause customers to end business relationships with a company if alternatives are readily available. We need happy customers and genuinely want our customers to be pleased with the products and services we provide. What business wouldn’t? In addition to meeting their immediate needs, by elevating our service and doing more than what is required, only then can we exceed their expectations.”
Ask, “What does it mean to exceed customers’ expectations? In what ways do we, as a Company (department, team, workgroup), exceed customer expectations?”
Say, “Exceeding customer expectations is going beyond what is expected and providing the customer with an “intentional experience.” We have to put thought into the customer interaction and demonstrate that we care. This could be something as simple as using the customer’s name during a conversation. It becomes a building block to a deeper customer experience which can, in turn, lead to increased customer loyalty and potentially new clients.
“In addition to differentiating themselves from competitors, the companies that consistently deliver customer experiences above and beyond what is expected are the companies that change the customer’s mindset from “Like” to “Love.” And when a customer loves a company, they have a much more positive impact on the company’s financial success.”
Ask: “Does our Company meet (satisfy) or exceed customer expectations? What are some examples?”
Relate any Company customer satisfaction statistics you identified in the Preparations section.
Reiterate the ways in which the previous Tenets play contribute to exceeding customer expectations. Provide examples if needed.
Summary
Doing only what is required to meet customer expectations creates the opportunity for competitors to gain customers and market share. The same is true for providing poor service. The goal is to exceed customer expectations in order to build loyalty to the company and its products. By doing so, employees contribute to the organization’s financial success.
Homework/exercise
Over the next week, identify examples of how you or your coworker exceeded a customer’s expectations. Be prepared to share one or two stories in the next class discussion. As mentioned in Tenet 3, collect stories and share them whenever possible. People want to know what works and what doesn’t work.
Let’s Engage!
I’m Agent in Engagement Simpson…Gregory F Simpson.
Employee engagement is a critical mission. I hope I can count on your help! Subscribe to the RSS Feed to receive the latest intelligence/insights and/or register to make entries in the comments log.
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Email me at g…@a…t.com.
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Learn more about me at gregoryfsimpson.com.
P.S. First contact? Welcome to the Agent In Engagement community. Explore and join fellow employee engagement operatives in targeting a known thief – alias: Disengagement. Together we can bring this thief to justice and make the world a better place for all companies and their employees.
You can access information on The 10 Tenets of Better Engaged Employees below:
Tenet 1 – Customers Make the Rules
Tenet 2 – Service Comes from the Inside Out
Tenet 3 – Provide Solutions and Show that You Care
Tenet 4 – Customers Define Quality and Service
Tenet 5 – Feedback from Customers is a Gift
Tenet 6 – Know Your Customer and You’ll Be Rewarded
Tenet 7 – Skip Satisfaction, Exceed Expectations
Tenet 8 – Create Value
Tenet 9 – Be More, Better, Faster, Different
Tenet 10 – Honor Your Customer
