by Shep Hyken
BE PART OF SOMETHING BIGGER THAN YOURSELF
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Helpful is more than a business strategy. It is a philosophy that touches the human spirit.
WE CLOSE WITH THE CHALLENGE that the greatest careers and the greatest companies manage to meet: True success, for both people and companies, comes when we commit ourselves to helping others. This is more than helping our customers with our products. It’s much bigger than that. I touched on this idea in Tool #49: The Law of Reciprocity, and I want to end the book by exploring it more deeply here, because I believe it is the highest-ranking “card” any person or organization committed to great service can play.
Over and over again, while doing research for this book, I asked executives, owners, associates, and customers of the most helpful hardware stores on the planet to tell me what made Ace different from other businesses. The same two answers always came up: people and community. Ace Hardware achieves the goals of “putting people first” and “giving to the community” by weaving them deep into the DNA of its business.
Tom Knox, Ace’s Vice President of Retail and Business Development, put it this way:
Ace’s success is rooted in something that’s a whole lot bigger than anything you can buy at a store. We’re really more than just a store, and what we’re doing every day is something a lot more important than just selling hardware. We are part of the community, and we really do build our day around giving something back to that community because we live there too. That’s the secret. We’re part of something that’s bigger than any one of us.
Now, a lot of people on the outside of the business think we’re focused on helpful, and from their perspective, we are. But when you spend some time with us, you realize that what we are really focused on is family—the Ace family. It happens to be a pretty big family, a global family, and we are so proud to be part of it that we’re always looking for new ways to take care of each other. That’s why you see people in the community relying on us the way they do. It’s the way we take care of each other. I believe that, as long we can still inspire our people to look beyond themselves and take care of the family, we’ll continue to be successful.
Gene Pedrotti, owner of Pedrotti Ace Hardware in Benicia, California, told me: “People sometimes ask me why I am so devoted to Ace Hardware. The answer is that I believe we’re here not just to serve ourselves and our associates, but to serve our community at a higher level … You don’t look for ways to treat people like friends. You look for ways to treat people like family. I believe you can expand that family to include the whole world if you want to.”
Dozens of members of the Ace retail family I talked to shared moving stories of how their people stepped up to help their communities during natural catastrophes such as hurricanes, floods, and tornadoes. They took chainsaws and cut up tree limbs that were blocking roads. They kept their stores open 24 hours a day for people who needed them to be there. They took their own personal time to band together with their teammates for the betterment of the community.
This fusion of business and community gives customers, associates, owners, and everyone else who comes in contact with the organization an inspiring sense of achieving something more important than any individual could possibly achieve independently. Charitable giving is a part of that achievement. For example, Ace is very involved in the Children’s Miracle Network and numerous other charities, but that’s only part of it. Philanthropy isn’t all we’re talking about here. The word “neighborhood” does a better job of describing what Ace actually supports with its mission. Make sure your business is part of a neighborhood (whether it’s virtual or geographical), a special community where people look out for each other.
At the best Ace stores, you experience a sense of being part of something shared, something that matters, something about mutual trust and looking out for each other that used to be much more common in our world, something that is worth keeping around. Maureen, a long-time Ace customer in Washington State, posted these memorable words online in praise of her local Ace store: “You define what it means to live in a community.”
Our own willingness to give something back to our community is the best measure of our success in this world. That’s the real Ace card, the highest-ranking card in the deck, and it’s the card we should be ready and willing to play.
YOUR AMAZEMENT TOOLBOX
We can always find a way to be part of something bigger than ourselves, and we will always be glad we did.
Integrate “putting people first” and “giving to the community” by weaving them deep into the DNA of your business.
Treat your customers like neighbors. Neighbors look out for one another.
Inspire employees, customers, and everyone else who comes in contact with you to become part of a cause that matters.
Our own willingness to find a way to HELP each and every person we encounter is the ultimate and best measure of our success.
THE DRILL
How do you define community?
What do you and/or your organization give back to the community? Or what could you give back?
EPILOGUE
CREATE A DEMANDING CUSTOMER
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The ultimate test of customer amazement: Be so good that you create a problem for the competition.
UP TO THIS POINT, I’ve shared 52 Amazement Tools for Amazing Every Customer Every Time. Some of those tools probably seemed more relevant to your world than others.
Here’s what I want you to do now: Pick out the strategies that leapt right out at you, right away, and made you think, “Hey, I—or we—could do that.” Make a commitment to start implementing them right now … so that within the next 30 days you will have put those initial Amazement Tools into practice and raised the standards of your customers so high that you create a problem for your competition.
One month from now, I want you to be so good at what you do that if one of your customers happened to call on your most significant competitor and requested the same level of service that you deliver, that competitor would consider your customer to be “too demanding.”
Notice that I’m talking about a different kind of demanding customer. Not one who whines, nags, or is “high maintenance,” but one, who loves your service and demands it of others. When you’re so good that you meet and exceed the high expectations you set with your customers, you make it harder for your competition to compete with you. These customers aren’t demanding of you. They are demanding of your competitors, so much so that your competitors aren’t up to the task of consistently meeting their demands. That’s a great place to be!
Guess what? Demanding customers are less price-sensitive than other customers are. Even in a so-called challenging economy, there are plenty of customers out there who are willing to give you a little wiggle room on price, or maybe even more than a little wiggle room …
IF you do what Ace does, and consistently deliver an above-average experience. That’s amazement!
IF you do what Ace does and engage, one-on-one, with your customers and create an emotional bond with each of them.
IF you do what Ace does, and use the (inevitable) Moments of Misery that arise as opportunities to prove to your customer that you are willing to take responsibility for the problem and find a solution that works for everyone. That turns a Moment of Misery into a Moment of Magic!
IF you do what Ace does, and go above and beyond the call on behalf of the relationship with the customer, never taking the easy way out.
IF you do all that, then one month from today your customers will have gotten used to the higher standard you’ve set. And they’ll start to expect it from everyone!
In the end, that’s what really de-commoditizes your business: the heightened expectation that creates a demanding customer. Nothing else!
Of course, this is a major part of Ace’s business strategy. They want demanding customers, especially the type we’re describing here. In fact, the more demanding, the better. As a
n Ace customer in Seattle put it, “Even though the prices can be, but are not necessarily, higher … the convenience and help are worth it.” That’s a customer who’s been amazed! You’ll hear variations on that message of loyalty, high expectation, and evangelism expressed by countless loyal Ace customers around the world. Ace wins because they strive to be the most helpful hardware stores on the planet … by creating demanding customers!
YOUR AMAZEMENT TOOLBOX
Be so good at what you do that when your customers expect the same level of service from a competitor, they’re considered too demanding!
Demanding customers are less price-sensitive than other customers are.
Even in a “challenging” economy, there are plenty of customers who are willing to accept a higher (but still fair) price, if you amaze them.
Win in the marketplace … by creating a demanding customer!
THE DRILL
Are you so good at what you do that if one of your customers happened to do business with a competitor and demanded the same level of service, that competitor would consider your customer to be “too demanding”?
If yes, please describe why. If not, what would it take to be that good?
FINAL WORDS
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THIS ISN’T THE END of the journey. It’s only the beginning.
If all you do is read the ideas I’ve shared with you about amazement, the journey hasn’t pointed you in the right direction. On the other hand, if you make the effort to implement one or more of these 52 tools, you will find that that effort has the potential to transform you and your entire organization.
I’ve prepared a special companion workbook to go along with this book. It puts all of the questions at the end of each tool into a workbook format that is designed to help you make absolutely sure that you identify the Amazement Tools that are right for you and your organization, and then use those tools in a way that is perfectly suited to your organization and your situation. To download it (free) all you have to do is visit:
www.AmazeEveryCustomer.com
Along with the workbook, you will also find additional content that will help you continue your journey toward amazement.
Always be amazing!
Shep Hyken
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
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FIRST, I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE you, the reader. Thank you for investing in this book, which is filled with ideas that can be put to use immediately. My hope is that you picked up many of these ideas from the 52 tools, and if you haven’t already done so, will implement them soon. As I stated in the first chapter, it only takes one idea to transform your business.
I owe much gratitude to the clients I get to work with every day. Thank you for the confidence you display when you book me to speak at your meetings, let us provide you with our trusted trainers to help create a customer-focused culture, and, of course, buy my books! Every time I work with a client I learn something new. There is a piece of all of you in this book.
A special thank-you to the team that helped bring this book to the marketplace. Brandon Toropov was my content editor and sounding board, keeping me focused to create a great product. Linda Read helped with initial proofreading and grammatical editing. My team at Greenleaf Book Group was wonderful. There’s the CEO, Clint Greenleaf; my main contact, Justin Branch; my day-to-day contact, Alan Grimes; editor extraordinaire, Lari Bishop; cover and interior designer, Kim Lance; and the rest of the team who does everything necessary to create a successful book.
And a huge thank-you to my friends at Ace Hardware. I’ve been fortunate to be booked as a speaker at their conventions since the 1990s. I’m honored and flattered that they had the confidence in me to produce a book that singles them out as the consummate role model for creating amazing customer service. There were many executives from the Ace corporate offices and dozens and dozens of retailers who made themselves available for interviews and visits. There are two gentlemen I want to single out for their extraordinary—dare I say amazing—efforts to help bring this book to life. Tom Knox and Jay Heubner. Thank you, gentlemen! This project would not have happened without you.
Finally, I want to acknowledge and thank my family, which includes my wife, Cindy, my son, Brian, and my daughters, Alex and Casey. I’m lucky to have a family that puts up with my crazy schedule and time-consuming projects. They enthusiastically support me in all of my endeavors. I appreciate and love them for that—and much more. The kids are getting older and we have just one left at home. Whenever we are all together, usually for a holiday or a family trip, it is a very special time. I never realized just how much I would cherish those times. And just like a good book, I look forward to our next chapter.
INDEX
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A
Accountability of customer’s experience, 150–152
Ace Hardware
Ace Rewards program at, 198
active evangelists for, 192–193
alignment at, 28–29
as under appreciated brand, 11
associates at, 24
checking with, 21–22
brand promises of, 21
as business-to-business brand, 15, 19
as business-to-consumer brand, 19
buyer behavior at, 10–11
Certified Ace Helpful at, 29
community surrounding, 175–176
company mantra at, 29
as competitive, 61, 71
competitive pricing at, 12
connecting the dots at, 105
consistency at, 20, 99
core attributes of experience at, 99
core best practices at, 190–191
core standards driving, 14
as corporate rock star, 20
creating quality conversations with
customers, 134
Customer Coordinator at, 201
customer feedback at, 181
as customer-focused business, 15
customer-focused culture of, 14, 17
customer satisfaction and, 10–11, 16
customer service at, 11, 16
easy way out and, 83–84
efforts to learn from customers, 53–54
as employee-centric business, 27, 41–42
e-newsletter of, 198
first impression tactic at, 132
Five-Dollar Lifeboat at, 31, 32
focusing on customers at, 127–128
giving back to the community, 214–216
as global company, 15, 19, 208–209
Good Samaritan stories at, 128–129
Helpful 101 certification at, 29
Helpful Index at, 29
helpfulness as mantra at, 21–23, 30–34, 80–81, 99, 139
hiring policies at, 105
importance of people, 20, 23
as individualized, 99
in-store decorations in, 209
as locally owned and operated, 10, 12, 15, 19, 204
managing the wait at, 163
money spent on advertising, 16
as network of privately owned stores, 16
number of stores, 10
operationalization of culture, 165–166
operation of, by independent business
owners, 14
passion to serve and, 23–24
position of, 23
predictability at, 20
pride of store owners and, 21
product quality at, 10–11
profitability of, 24–25
putting people first at, 214–216
quality conversations with customers
at, 134
reciprocity and, 204
revenue growth at, 16
as role model, 4
showing gratitude to customers of, 186–187
store owners and, 24–25
success of, 14, 19
tribal narratives from, 108
trust at, 99
use of mystery shoppers, 181
writing book about, 7
AceHardware.c
om, 195
Action, taking, with acceptable temporary solution, 159, 160
Admiration, ownership and, 47–49
After-experience, 194–195
Airline industry, customer satisfaction and, 8
Albrecht, Karl, 40
Alessandra, Tony, 124
Alignment, 41, 79–80
in creating, service culture, 28–29
Alspaugh, Rick, 206
Amazement, 41
Customer Amazement, 39
defined, 3–4
The Five Stages, 40–42
Internal and External Customers and, 39–40
Moment of Magic, 35–36, 85, 137, 139, 169–170, 173
Moment of Mediocrity, 38–39, 86, 88, 131, 169, 177
Moment of Misery, 38, 88, 89, 131, 137, 165, 169
Moment of Truth, 36–38, 86, 88, 132, 169
The Amazement Revolution, 11
Amazement role model, 5
Amazon.com, 9, 181
Apologizing, 159
Apple, 9, 11, 181
Associates
checking with, 21–22
customers trust of, 51
making eye contact with, 90–91
training of, 148
Attitude, giving customer bad, 53
Authority, becoming an, 111
Awesome responsibility, 87–88
B
Bankruptcy, Chapter 11, 8
Bean, L. L., 11
Befriending competition, 56–59
Behavior
buyer, 10–11
impact of language on, 93–94
“Best of the best” companies, amazement and, 3–4
Best practices, 165
in customer service recovery, 159–161
debriefing as, 53–55
focusing on customers as, 127–128
Bezos, Jeff, 173
Big box stores, 58, 71
Bommarito, Vince, 116–117