I hear companies testify they are “customer-centric” or “customer-focused.” Yet, when I ask them if their customers – and how they will be impacted – are at the core of every decision they make, the subtle response is, “You gotta be kidding, right?”
Instead, our customary concerns are how decisions will impact our stock price, or our market share, or a myriad of other aspects… rather than the impact upon the customer. We step over potential dollars in customer loyalty and repeat business to save dimes on reduced staffing and training.
We should always be searching and learning – and filling the gaps between what we deliver and what our customers and clients really want.
It begins with the first interaction you and your colleagues have with your customers, clients and prospects.
Somewhere along the way, we seem to have lost the perspective that what we do impacts the lives of others.
It seems we live in a time of character assassination for mere sport. Anonymous online haters who don’t know the facts – or don’t care – irresponsibly attack others to draw attention to themselves. They connect imaginary “dots” that exist only in their own minds, without concern about the consequences to the victims of their venom.
And, it becomes so common that many of us just shrug our shoulders and say, “Haters gonna hate!” and move on – never imagining that we could someday be an unfortunate target.
Maybe we would all be better off if we remember the wisdom that my grandmother used to share with me:
“It doesn’t make you a bigger person to make someone else smaller. It just makes certain you stay less than they are.”
The level of customer service — not to mention the even higher standard of the customer experience — is genuinely, consistently pretty awful.
Especially during these challenging times, managers believe they can save X% by cutting back staff and reducing service. Guess what happens? Customers go someplace else…
But, here’s the rub: the organization’s leaders then blame the decline in sales on the pandemic economy or the competition. They never say, “We screwed up. We should have been investing in serving you more — instead of cutting overhead and caring less about your repeat business.”
Another element in the level of customer service provided is caused by lazy employees who don’t care. One of the ways that Steve Jobs kept the best employees at Apple is that he wouldn’t tolerate those who weren’t “all in.” If you don’t terminate those who aren’t committed, you will eventually lose those who are.
Sure, I realize you must compensate and treat them right. But your best employees are tired of carrying the load for the slackers. Sooner or later, this discontent will either show up in their performance… or their absence.
To approach your business as “show business” is not to be confused with putting on an act, being overly dramatic, or being fake.
It’s about differentiating yourself from the competition by understanding your clients in the same way that show business understands their audience.
It’s about creating specific strategies based on your customer’s distinct preference in order to deliver experiences that are compelling and engaging.
It’s about taking what we can learn from the entertainment business and leverage that insight into building strong and lasting emotional connections with our clients and colleagues.
The entertainment industry spends more time studying human emotion than it does the most advanced visual effects or new camera angles.
Why?
Because an emotional connection is the most potent and influential connection possible.
To make 1997’s Titanic, it cost a staggering $200 million. (In 1997 dollars!) However, not very many people stepped out of the theatre marveling over the fact that a special Russian submarine was used or every detail on the ship matched the original Titanic down to the doorknob. The audience walked out in a trance, swooning over Jack and Rose’s romance, saddened by the massive loss of life — or enraged that Jack’s death could have been prevented had Rose just shared the door she was floating on!
The fact is people rarely remember the details.
But they will remember how something made them feel.
We have created a culture of customers who demand compelling experiences whenever they do business. Regardless of your industry, what your product or service is, you’re selling an experience.
The more powerful the connection, the greater the success.
Your customer’s measuring stick for efficiency may be entirely different from yours, and if you’re not aligned with your customer’s expectations, then you’re never going to meet their needs. Customer service and customer
experience should not be confused.
Remembering that all business is show business…
You can be creative despite limited resources. “The power of ideas can often compensate for the lack of size.”
Consider the following:
The 1978 slasher flick Halloween had a $325,000 budget but went on to make $47 million at the box office.
2004’s Saw’s budget was only $1.2 million, and yet it earned $103 million.
Napoleon Dynamite’s budget was only $400,000, and it made an impressive $46 million.
Who could forget the phenomenon that was The Blair Witch Project that had a $60,000 budget but ultimately earned $140.5 million?
It doesn’t matter how large or well-funded your business is, adopting the show business philosophy can impact your future success in a major way.
You can go a long way with superior creativity when it’s matched with strategic execution.
