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Why You Should Go to Austin in January

You should go to Austin, Texas at the end of January. Really, you should. It will be more than worth your while.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, January 29th and 30th, I’m teaching a new class about Shareworthy Customer Service at the 21st Century Business School known as Wizard Academy with a fellow named Tim Miles. It’s a magical place in the hill country just southwest of Austin, Texas. This week, Vice Chancellor Michele Miller asked me three questions about the class so she could promote it in the newsletter that goes out to thousands of alumni. Here are my answers. (Tomorrow, I’ll share Tim’s answers.)

Michele: How did you come up with the idea of teaching this class?
Me: Tim asked me:-)

(I believe Tim asked me because Tim reads this blog, follows the work I have been doing to teach multiple aspects of customer service to retail businesses, knows that I know what Wizard Academy is all about, and because Tim’s expertise, while far greater than mine, leans more heavily on service-based businesses. Remind me, and I’ll ask him when we get there if this is true.)

Michele: We see lots of workshops on creating good customer service. Your course description looks intriguing – what is one thing that sets this course apart from others out there?
Phil: I see two problems with most customer service training programs…

First, there is no standard definition for what is Great Customer Service. Everyone seems to have their own opinion ranging from “slightly better than what my competitors do” at the low end to “WOW-ing my customers beyond their wildest expectations” at the upper end. And most businesses have an unrealistic idea of their own level of customer service.  Without a definition, it is hard to objectively see where you stand. Without a definition it is hard to measure results. Without a definition it is hard to create consistency. What drew me to Tim’s teachings and made me want to partner with him is that he and I share the same definition of great customer service – so good, the customer has to share it with others. We both teach from that upper end and show businesses how that level of service is within their grasp once they identify it.

The second problem with most customer service training programs is that they often focus solely on the interaction between employee and customer, creating scripted interactions that eliminate the worst elements of customer service but don’t really delight customers in a Shareworthy way. Although employee/customer interaction is one of the most important elements of customer service, it is not the only one. You can improve your employee/customer interactions exponentially and still be undone by a poor website, a confusing policy, a complicated form, or even a dirty restroom. Tim and I both recognize that to reach the pinnacle of customer service, it takes more than just employee/customer interactions, and it takes more than just scripted role plays. We’ll address all of those elements and show businesses how to make sure everything is aimed at delighting the customer.

What sets our program apart is that we break down the whole concept of customer service – every single element – into understandable and measurable parts. We help each business create a definition by which success can be measured. Then we teach those attending how to create a culture that reaches that level of success consistently and in every aspect of their business.

Michele: What is the most important thing students will walk away with?
Me: There are so many walk-aways that it would be hard to name just one. The segments I will be teaching include four topics that stand alone on their own merit. Add in what Tim will teach and there will be more walk-aways than most people can fit in their luggage. The cool thing is that much of what the attendees will learn can be implemented right away and will start showing a return right away. Instant ROI!

At the end of the two days, what will really take place is an understanding of this whole new definition of customer service, of where the bar can and should be raised. After that, the businesses will have a tool box full of ways to consistently hit and exceed those standards.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS I forgot to add… Not only will you make back your investment many times over, you’ll make new friends, eat great food, and have more fun learning than you ever thought possible!

Take a Stand For Something

Want to get some FREE publicity? Take a stand for something. Draw your line in the sand and make it known on which side you stand. The press loves stories like that.

Want to get some Word-of-Mouth publicity? Take a stand for something. Be adamant about what you will, and sometimes more importantly, what you won’t do. Customers love to share that kind of information.

Want to grow your brand faster and get better known? Take a stand for something. Share your strong point of view with the world, knowing that some will hate it and some will love it, and soon you will be known for it.

I know what you’re thinking right now. The weasel or lizard in your brain is saying, but won’t I alienate some of my customers? 

Yes, you will. The stronger your stand, the more you will alienate part of the potential customer base. But the same is true of those you ignite. The more powerful your stance, the more you fan the flames of passion in those who share your point of view, and the more loyal they become.

I know another thing you’re thinking right now. I can’t afford to anger any customers. I need them all.

Hate to burst your bubble but you don’t have them all. At best you have one in ten. More likely you have one in twenty – five percent of your market. Nineteen people have decided not to shop with you. Why? Either because they already know you or they don’t already know you. Those are the only two reasons. Well, there is a third reason, kinda. They think they know you.

When you take a stand you eliminate all doubt as to who you are. You may convert a few people who thought they knew you. More likely, though, you’ll get a better chance at converting the large percentage of customers who don’t know you.

How? Through the media, through word-of-mouth, through building a reputation.

Don’t be wishy washy. Be yourself, be yourself openly, be yourself all the way. Pretty soon you will own your corner of the market.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS Don’t know really who you are (in a business sense)? Follow the directions on this worksheet. It will help.

Mixed Message

I was in Louisville, KY last week for the ABC Expo, the biggest trade show for the juvenile products industry. A trade show this big deserves decorations just as big. And sure enough, right outside the Expo Center was a twenty foot tall rocking chair…

…with an unfortunate sign in front of it.

This was the first thing we all saw when we arrived at the show.  This was our first impression.

They might as well have said “Go Home!” or “Unwelcome!” or “Stay Out!” 

That sign was not there the first day. My best guess is that someone tried climbing on the chair which prompted someone from the organization to draw this crudely lettered five foot tall sign. Don’t you think it could have been handled in a far better way? Maybe a couple small signs attached to the legs for anyone who got close enough to think about climbing on the chair? Maybe better wording like, “For display purposes only,” or “Do not try this at home,”?

There are two lessons in all this.

First, go outside and walk up to your building. Be a customer. Look around you. See where you might be giving off a bad first impression. Fix it now.

Second, make sure everyone on your team knows the message you want to send. Make sure everyone knows the Core Values that drive you. Make sure everyone knows the impression you want to make. Even the most bottom person on your totem pole should know enough not to make this kind of mistake.

Yes, the little things like this do make a huge difference.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS Managing your Brand means managing the impression a customer has of your store. When you send out a mixed message, your customer gets the wrong impression. Control the message and you control the way people feel about you.

Don’t Hide Your Agenda

I was about to write a blog about the importance of the little details, like a clean bathroom, and how even those small things need to be consistent with your branding, your Core Values, otherwise they could undermine all the good you do.

I saw a headline and a survey that said 62% of customers think a dirty restroom is a sign of poor management.  Odor, dirty or clogged toilets, and bathrooms that looked old were the three most common problems.

Then I read the source… A plumbing supply company.  Made me pause for a moment.  Made me wonder if there was some sort of bias in the survey.  Made me wonder if there was a hidden agenda.

You, too?

And that, in a nutshell, is why consumers don’t trust us.  They think we have a hidden agenda.  That Hot Toy list that Toys R Us recently published? I watched it get trashed in a blog for being self-serving.

What if the plumbing supply company said… Hey, we’re in the bathroom supply business so we did a poll to see what the main complaints were that people had about public bathrooms.  Not surprisingly, smell and odor was number one.  We also learned some other interesting information about bathrooms.  They make a big impression on your customers, both good and bad.  Sure, we’re telling you because we want your business.  More importantly, we’re telling you because we want you to stay in business.  Without you, there are no public bathrooms for us to update.

Wouldn’t seem so self-serving, would it?  Just by being up front and honest about being self-serving, they sound less self-serving.  Ironic? Yes. People trust an open agenda.  They distrust a hidden one.

How can you be up front and honest so that you don’t seem to have a hidden agenda?  Here is one way we do it.  I constantly tell customers that we will help you install your car seat no matter where you bought it.  I then tell them up front that I have an ulterior motive for doing it.  If the car seat is installed safely, your child is safer.  If your child is safer, your child lives longer.  If your child lives longer… wait for it… you have to buy more toys.

Always gets a smile (we’re here to make you smile, remember?).

Be honest about why you do what you do.  Tell your ulterior motives.  Tell the downside.  It helps build trust instead of destroy it.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS But please be sure to clean your bathrooms!  It does make a difference.  In the book Retail Superstars George Whalin talks about the bathrooms as a positive feature in a number of the stores in the book.

Third Time’s a Charm

I did a new talk for the Monroe Chamber of Commerce’s Business Summit three weeks ago called “Better Your Business by Being Your Business Better”.    It is a mix of lessons and case studies of companies that are staying true to their Core Values and reaping the benefits.  Works well as a keynote or workshop.  Full of stories to make you laugh, make you cry, make you understand how Values play a key role in your success.

The audience loved it!  I have received multiple requests to do the same talk to other groups.  In fact, I’ve already done it twice more since then.

As much as I liked the first presentation and the positive feedback it received, there were a few rough spots the audience didn’t notice but I knew were there.  There were a few transitions that needed polishing, a couple slides that were unnecessary, and a few stories that needed tweaking.  I made some changes and the second presentation received equally strong praise.  But I knew it still wasn’t where it could be.  More tweaking followed.

The third time I knocked it out of the park!  The crowd was completely into it.  They were laughing out loud.  They were nodding in approval.  They were clapping and carrying on.  They were getting all the inside jokes.  They were in tears.  They were fully vested.  Every transition flowed perfectly.  Every story and lesson fit like a well-cut jigsaw puzzle.  Yes, the third time was the charm.

Don’t get me wrong.  The first two were pretty darned good.  One person told me after the first presentation that it was the best thing he had ever seen.  So unless his bar was really low…

I could have stopped there and left the presentation alone.  Good enough.  Both of the other groups would have been every bit as pleased seeing the first version.  But I didn’t.  I knew I could do better.

I think many business owners, myself included, are guilty of this.  We know we are already pretty darned good at what we do.  We know we are already doing a better job than our competition.  We know we are giving the customers a really good experience.  Why try harder? Where is the return on investment?  Will the customer even notice?

Here is the nugget of truth… Good enough is only good enough today.  Right now.  Tomorrow you have to be better.  Olympic Gold Medalist Mary Lou Retton reminded us “…the gold-medal performances of today are just the compulsory exercises next time.”  Yes, the customer will notice. So you better take notice, too.

What are you doing pretty darn good today that you can make better tomorrow?

I’m already working on how to make the fourth version of this presentation (which is already booked) even better.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS   Better Your Business by Being Your Business Better is now up on my website under Speaker for Hire.  If you are looking for a talk that will motivate, get people to take ownership, and teach everyone two lessons that they can take to the bank, this 50 minute presentation rocks!  Works for owners and employees.  Works as a keynote or as a workshop.  Works with twelve people or twelve hundred.  Get in touch.

Two Ways to Use Facebook Better

Social media is not a new form of advertising.  But it is a new method for branding your business.

Facebook is not a new avenue to talk at your customers.  But it is a new method for talking with your customers.

The biggest mistake most businesses make with social media (heck, with all forms of advertising) is using them the wrong way.  With social media, the specific mistake is thinking it is a platform for you to talk about your business.

If you think that way, you have it backwards.  Social media is for your customers to tell you about their lives and how you fit in them.  Therefore, the best way to use social media is to help your fans and followers start the conversation and then let them do all the talking.  Ask questions.  Ask for feedback.  Tell them what you’re thinking and ask if they agree.

Groovy Girls versus Barbie Dolls

One way I like to start the conversation on Facebook for Toy House is to post pictures of two competing toys to see which one my customers prefer.  Quick Polls.  People love to give you their opinions, so let them.  One time I posted this pic of Groovy Girls vs Barbie Dolls.

You can see from the comments how my fans were doing the “selling” of Groovy Girls.  Far more powerful than me trying to “sell” my customers.

The other advantage of these quick polls was how easily it was to get a read on what my fans liked and didn’t like and why.  They told me!

Not only did I get my customers to do the selling, I got valuable information about what my customers liked and disliked.  I also got a lot of interest.  The more people commented, the more people saw the post.  We found that the number of people who “liked” us grew faster when we did stuff like this rather than just shout out “We have Groovy Girls!”

Furthering Your Brand

Another way to use Facebook successfully is to use it to further your brand.  Make sure all of your posts are consistent with your Core Values.  For instance, one of the Toy House Core Values is Nostalgia.  So I posted this…

In 1949 my grandparents, Phil & Esther Conley transformed a house on First Street into a toy store. Everyone said they were crazy. You can’t sell toys year-round in Jackson. 18 years and three expansions later they had outgrown that house. On Monday, September 18, 1967 they re-opened Toy House at 400 North Mechanic Street. Forty five years later, the store is still going strong in our current building, still making people smile. If you like what we’ve done, share this with your friends. In a world where everything is becoming more disposable, some things are still built to last.

It was one of the most popular posts ever in terms of views and shares and likes.  Nostalgia is a powerful value that resonates with a lot of people.

I didn’t tell people what to do.  I didn’t tell them where to go.  I told them what I believed in.  I tapped into their own feelings of nostalgia.  I tapped into their own belief systems.  I deepened the connection they might already have and used them, by their comments and likes and shares, for reaching out to others who might share those same values.

I love Facebook.  Not as a means of selling, but as a means of conversing, of learning, of sharing, and of building a deeper relationship.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS  Want to know more about the right and wrong ways to use all other forms of advertising? Read my FREE eBook How Ads Work Part 1.

Changing a Customer’s Mind

About 40% of the population are going to vote Democratic in the next election no matter what.  Another 40% are going to vote Republican no matter what.  Their minds cannot be changed.  These people are easy to identify.  They are the ones posting sound bites and article links all over Facebook.

The real political battle is only over the 20% who may change their minds.  That’s it.  Twenty percent.

Aren’t you glad you’re in Retail?

The National Retail Federation did a survey that said 78% of satisfied customers would shop somewhere else they thought would be more fun (heard this in a presentation, but cannot find survey).  Seventy-eight percent are willing to change their mind on where to shop!  I think the number is much higher.

We all know that Transactional Customers will change their mind on where to shop.  They’ll shop wherever they can find the best deal.  But what about the Relational Customer?  What if you are first loser on a Relational Customer’s list?  How do you change their minds?

Make it Fun
Start by doing what the NRF survey told you to do.  Make your store more fun!  Sit around with your staff (and a six-pack of beer if you think that will help) and try to envision what “the most fun store” in your category would look like.  Sport Clips is a hair salon for men that figured out how to make haircuts more fun.  They have translated that fun into becoming one of the fastest growing franchises in North America.  Even if you implement just one suggestion from your sit around, you’ll probably be more fun than anyone in your market.

Care
We all know the saying, “The customer doesn’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”  Take that saying to heart and find new ways to care about your customer.  Find out what concerns she has about shopping at your store, why she might stay away.  Eliminate those concerns.  Find out what you can do to make her feel more welcome, invited, and treasured.  Do those things.  Find out what she expects and then exceed that expectation at every turn.

Seth Godin posted this blog earlier today…

Questions we ask before we trust your new idea
Who are you?
Do I trust you?
Am I afraid of it?
Will this work for me?
Who says it’s important?
What will my peers think?

Those are the questions a Relational Customer asks long before they will pay attention to your advertising, your sales pitch, or your staff blather on about facts and data.  You need to answer those questions first.

Two Reminders
You know this… The definition of insanity is to do the same thing and expect different results.  If you are not happy with your results, then you need to do something different.

Roy H. Williams taught me that people don’t actually change their minds.  They make new decisions based on new information.  And since we all know that the heart wins out over the mind, give the heart of your customers new information so that they can make new decisions.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS I was listening to an ad for a national retail chain that mentioned how they were focused on and committed to “customer service”, yet they never once told me how.  The rest of the ad focused solely on price.  Is it any wonder I cannot for the life of me remember which chain?  Don’t tell me.  Show me.

Stay Above the Fray

Mudslinging and politics seem to go hand in hand.  You’ve read enough articles about how effective negative campaigning is for political contests that you realize it isn’t going away any time soon.

Some of you have even wondered if it will work for your store.

It won’t.

Here is why…

When it is a one-time vote between only A or B, you can win votes for B by telling everyone how bad A is.  But retail is not a one-time vote between only two candidates.  Retail includes many candidates including None of the Above.  You don’t have the resources to attack each one of those options (including None of the Above) negatively.  And even if you did, the feelings people will have about you will be far from positive before they even step foot inside your door!

In a political election people will choose the “lesser of two evils” mainly because they have no other choice.

Going negative at best only makes you the lesser of two evils.  

The cool thing is that you don’t have to go negative to point out how you are better than your competitor.  Take the, “Here is what we do and why we do it,” stance.

Talk about your virtues that make you different from your competition.
Talk about why you do it that way.
Talk about how that benefits your customers.

That is the campaign that wins time and again in retail.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS Not sure what are your virtues?  Read this short document Understanding Your Brand and do the following worksheets.  You’ll know better who you are so that you can be who you are better.

It’s All in the Packaging

Joshua Bell is a world-class violinist who demands $100 or more per ticket for concerts at places like Carnegie Hall.  As a social experiment he played in the Washington, DC subway to see if people could tell the difference between a virtuoso and a street musician.

As expected, most people walked right by him and his $3.5 million Stradivarius violin, not recognizing his talent in the halls of a subway.

It’s all in the Packaging.

Our city council passed an ordinance to collect a fee for rainwater management.  It has received huge opposition because it looks and smells like a tax.  The county government is even suing the city government over the legality of the fee, claiming it actually is a tax.  Few are arguing whether city needs the money.  Mostly they are arguing about how the city went about getting it.  Had they called it a tax, promoted the necessity of it, and asked permission, it is hard to say where the vote would have fallen.

It’s all in the Packaging.

There is a retail store I know that is closing.  After a lengthy struggle with their city council over the sign ordinance, they were two years in business without a sign.  During the closing sale a customer remarked, “You would have been more successful if you had a sign up.” (Facepalm)

It’s all in the Packaging.

Two cake mixes sit side by side on the grocery store shelf.  They have the same ingredients, probably even made in the same factory.  One has a recognizable name, a woman who has symbolized fine baked goods for decades.  You instinctively reach for that package, even though it is 35 cents more than the unknown box sitting next to it.

It’s all in the Packaging.

Packaging makes a huge difference in the way people perceive everything around them.  Packaging drives purchasing decisions.  Packaging drives value decisions.  Packaging drives voting decisions.  Packaging makes the difference between good idea and great success.  Packaging is the single most influential element of business.

How much attention are you placing on the way you Package your business?

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS  Replace the word Packaging with Branding and go read this post again.  Get it?  Here is a quick way to understand how to re-Package your business for long-term success.

Advertising Versus Public Relations

I may be different because I look at Advertising and Marketing and Public Relations as just similar types of the same product – exposure of your business to the public.  You can add Location to that mix, too.  You can even add Customer Service.  All five serve the same purpose.  They just do it a different way.  Some companies have completely different departments to carry out each function, often without one knowing what the other is doing.

They are not entities to themselves, just tools you use to promote your business, promote your message.  I found this joke on the website AJokeADay.com that pretty well sums it up. (You’ll notice that the message is quite clear;-)

You see a gorgeous girl at a party.
You go up to her and say, “I am very rich. Marry me!”

That’s Direct Marketing.

You’re at a party with a bunch of friends and see a gorgeous girl.
One of your friends goes up to her and pointing at you and says,
“He’s very rich. Marry him.”

That’s Advertising.

You see a gorgeous girl at a party.
You go up to her and get her telephone number.
The next day you call and say, “Hi, I’m very rich. Marry me.”

That’s Telemarketing.

You’re at a party and see a gorgeous girl.
You get up and straighten your tie; you walk up to her and pour
her a drink.
You open the door for her; pick up her bag after she drops it,
offer her a ride, and then say,
“By the way, I’m very rich. Will you marry me?”

That’s Public Relations.

You’re at a party and see a gorgeous girl.
She walks up to you and says, “You are very rich.”

That’s Brand Recognition.

You see a gorgeous girl at a party.
You go up to her and say, “I’m rich. Marry me”
She gives you a nice hard slap on your face.

That’s Customer Feedback!!!!

Read more: http://www.ajokeaday.com/Clasificacion.asp?ID=13&Pagina=3#ixzz21qTE0vQO

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.Philsforum.com

PS If you are unsure of the purpose of your Advertising, Marketing, Public Relations, Location, and Customer Service… they all serve to let people know your Core Values.