What's Your Purple Goldfish? How to Win Customers and Influence Word of Mouth

by Stan Phelps

  Customer satisfaction comes from the extra step that we put on to our delivery of service. I was happy just to leave the pharmacy with the drops I needed and the fact that they were nice and pleasant to me. I’m delighted that they called to follow up. Even though I know I may pay a little more to go to Rite Aid, the fact that I received that follow up call tells me they care about my business.

  Marketing Lagniappe Takeaway: We’ve seen the follow up call cited a few times in the Project. It’s a smart move for the following reasons:

  Demonstrates you care – The transaction isn’t over when money is exchanged. It shows the customer that you are concerned about their satisfaction.

  Low cost – This is something that can be done by the pharmacist or business owner during a lull in the ordinary course of business.

  Troubleshooting – The vast majority of people will not complain. Following up allows you to correct any service issues and extend the life of your customer relationships.

  6. Making it Personal [PG #438]

  Capital Grill provides personalized cards from the servers. They make an effort to get to know their customers. They want you to build a relationship with your server.

  7. Playing the right cards [PG #476]

  Submitted by James Sorensen:

  My aunt recently required outpatient surgery at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge. When my aunt and I arrived we were greeted by a receptionist with a smile, met with the insurance coordinator who thoroughly explained the insurance coverage, spoke with the nurse that took extra time to make sure my aunt was comfortable and finally the doctor whom she has grown to trust over the years.

  After the surgery, when I arrived to pick up my aunt, a volunteer from the hospital was waiting in front with her and graciously helped her into my car. We stopped by a local restaurant for lunch and my aunt showed me her discharge paperwork along with a card that read “I hope your visit today was excellent.” I thought to myself that’s nice gesture, but a big surprise awaited us when my aunt opened the card and found it was hand signed by people she was in contact with that day.

  What a great example of how the health-care system is utilizing unique ways of reaching out to their patients by showing compassion and delivering a memorable experience.

  8. A little proactive extra [PG #593]

  Submitted to the Purple Goldfish Project via tweet by Paul Tracy.

  In Paul’s words:

  OK, I have to admit that I’ve been a fan of Shui Tea for some time. I don’t even remember how I stumbled across his website or why I made my first order from Shui Tea. Maybe it was the subtly irreverent attitude of the purveyor that just meshed with my personality or the product descriptions on the website.

  Regardless, I’ve been really happy with the quality of the tea that I’ve ordered from him and have placed a few orders. I’m relatively new to tea, but have been recording my tea reviews on this website called Steepster for a few months. I tend to be brutally truthful and in all honesty, I have really enjoyed everything I have ordered from Shui Tea.

  Today, I received an e-mail from the owner of Shui Tea that had, in part, the following: “I wanted to thank you for sharing so much about Shui Tea on Steepster and online. I just put a $10 store credit on your account to use if you order again. No expiration, and feel free to use it anytime and with other coupons you might see in e-mails or on Twitter.” I took advantage of the generous offer immediately because there were already a number of new items from Shui Tea that I wanted to try.

  The whole purpose of this post is to point out what a customer service and marketing genius the owner of Shui Tea has revealed himself to be. I was already a devoted fan of his brand. Through a very short and simple, yet personal, contact he has secured a customer for life. If there are ever any issues in the future (which I don’t expect but can happen) I’ll be more than willing to forgive them given the treatment he’s afforded me to date.

  In business, providing superb customer service and delivering lagniappe is like putting money into the bank. You are building up credit with your customers. As Paul alluded to above, if and when an issue arises you will be given leeway due to the goodwill you’ve earned.

  9. Know Your Customers [PG #336]

  Marty Desmond left this example within a comment on Kelly Ketelboeter’s post , “ What is Your Purple Goldfish ?” {Endnote 110}

  Gumba’s in Sunnyvale, CA

  I went for breakfast with friends at one of our favorite places on Saturday. We sat outdoors for the first time since street construction began months ago. As we were served, I watched how much fun the employees were having. I told my friends that it was great seeing the restaurant busy again and that I knew the construction hurt much of the business on that block.

  I went back Tuesday evening for a quick dinner. As I was eating, the owner came up, patted me on the back and thanked me for my business Saturday morning. Then, he told me how happy he was to see my friends and inquired about them. He asked if the dad had found another job, knowing that he was laid off months ago.

  We talked for a few moments more, and then he patted me on the back again, thanked me once more and walked off. I watched him walk away and thought about why I enjoyed that restaurant so much. The food is great, but it’s the experience that makes it worth going back.

  I realize that no fewer than four of his employees approached my friend to tell them how much they had missed his family. The culture of that business includes personal relationships whenever possible. I think that is a missing ingredient in so many businesses today.

  This restaurant has endured six months of lagging sales, due to people wanting to stay away during construction. Yet, they were genuinely concerned about the lives of the people who walked through their doors. To me, every question of “how is your friend” is a purple goldfish.

  Chapter 20

  #8 - Added Service

  “It has long been an axiom of mine that the little things are infinitely the most important.”

  – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

  AN ADDED TOUCH FOR GOOD MEASURE

  The 8th of the 12 types of purple goldfish is an “added service.” A little extra service that exceeds the expectations of your customers.

  Let’s look at eleven examples:

  1. Complimentary toner vacuuming [PG #249]

  Develop a service that’s convenient, good for the environment and saves you money. Then deliver it with a couple purple goldfish. That’s the order of the day for the folks at Cartridge World. Here is the example submitted by EJ Kritz:

  To begin, we’re in the business of refilling and re-manufacturing printer cartridges. We offer a free delivery service to our business customers during which time plenty of things can happen opening the door for added value.

  For example, if we’re delivering a cartridge for a laser printer but the businesses fax machine is on the fritz, it’s only natural and fitting that we’ll do anything we can to help get their fax back up and running. Similarly, many of our franchises keep a “toner vac” in their delivery vehicle. This vacuum is specially designed to handle the fine particles in toner. It’s a HUGE benefit to our customers (as silly and small as it sounds) to bring in the toner vac for a complimentary cleaning of their laser printer before we put in their new cartridge. This service is the printer equivalent of getting a free car wash each time you get a tank of gas… it doesn’t help your car run better but it sure does make you feel good.

  The last example is something almost universal regardless of which Cartridge World franchise you visit. It’s quite simple actually. Each and every business delivery comes complete with a Tootsie Pop. You see, purchasing our product is all about saving money. However, typically the person saving the money (the business owner) is not the same person taking the delivery (the office manager). This little token makes everyone smile in the middle of a busy day! In fact, many of our owners could even tell you the favorite flavor of pop for each of their top customers. Simple, and yes
, sweet.

  2. Recommending a competitor [PG #397]

  Joe Gascoigne, Co-Founder of OnePage cites Zappos:

  “As for an example, one that springs to mind is that if you try to order shoes from Zappos and they do not have the shoes you want in stock, they will actually recommend a nearby store that does. It seems counter-intuitive, but I think it really builds trust and it obviously works well for them.”

  According to an interview with CEO Tony Hsieh in Chief Marketer {Endnote 111}, he refuses to see customer service as an expense. Rather, it’s an investment,

  “Our business is based on repeat customers and word of mouth. There’s a lot of value in building up our brand name and what it stands for. We view the money that we spend on customer service as marketing money that improves our brand.”

  Here is another great example from an article in Footwear News:

  According to Jerry Tidmore, who manages Zappos’ help-desk concierge service,

  “One of the craziest stories was that of a customer who checked in to the Mandalay Bay hotel [in nearby Las Vegas] and forgot her shoes.” According to Tidmore, the guest called Zappos, where she had originally purchased the style, looking for a replacement, but they didn’t have any in stock. So the company found a pair in the right size at the mall, bought them and delivered them to the hotel — all for free.”

  3. Just don’t exceed expectations... obliterate them [PG #493]

  Another Zappos example was taken from Peter Osbourne’s blog Bulldog Simplicity: {Endnote 112}

  My son lost one of his dress shoes at school the other day. Don’t ask. I don’t know how you lose one shoe.

  So last night (Tuesday) he and his mother went to the store where he bought them. Nothing in his size. They get home and for a variety of reasons they don’t get online until about 10:00 p.m. They find the shoes and my wife calls Zappos to confirm that we’ll get the shoes by Thursday with one-day shipping. I’m not clear on the rest of the conversation, but Zappos waives the overnight delivery charges. No reason given, but it sounded like it was because we were first-time buyers.

  It’s like Tony Hsieh was sitting outside the house when we ordered Tyler’s shoes. So we get up this morning to find an e-mail with a tracking number. The doorbell rings at 9 a.m. It’s the UPS guy with the shoes. That’s right. Eleven hours after ordering the shoes, we had them. The customer survey arrived shortly after delivery, and guess how my wife filled out the score. She’s now a customer for life.

  Zappos has gotten a lot of great press in recent months and was purchased in July by Amazon, which says it’s leaving management in place after the sale closes. Smart man, that Jeff Bezos.

  As a first-time buyer, Zappos didn’t just exceed our expectations. They obliterated them. And that leaves me with two questions for you, regardless of whether you’re a retailer, a consultant, or a person within a large company…

  1. When was the last time you obliterated a customer or client’s expectations?

  2. How can you “Zappos” someone’s expectations the next time you deal with them?

  [NOTE: Zappos locates their own distribution center next to UPS in Kentucky. They staff the center 24/7/365 which guarantees orders get picked and shipped right away.]

  Zappos Marketing Lagniappe Takeaway: Recommending competitors when you don’t have the product, hand delivering a pair of shoes and upgrading to overnight shipping... Zappos is a pioneer in ways to proactively add service. Fitting for a shoe company “powered by service” or more appropriately according to Hsieh,

  “A customer service company who sells shoes.”

  4. Splitting sizes, not hairs [PG #667]

  It starts with employees. Nordstrom only has one rule...

  “Use good judgment in all situations”

  It has only one goal...

  “To provide outstanding customer service”

  This example was taken from a blog post by Ron Kaufman at Up Your Service: {Endnote 113}

  A sales clerk at Nordstrom in the United States sold my friend a new pair of shoes. Measuring his feet, the clerk discovered my friend’s right foot was size 9.5 and the left foot was a smaller 9.0. The clerk gave my friend the shoes he needed to achieve a perfect fit: one 9.5 and the other 9.0. I have no idea what the clerk did with the remaining mismatched shoes, but my friend’s loyalty to Nordstrom has been secured. Talk about going above and beyond to improve customer satisfaction!

  I’ve also experienced this signature lagniappe. Back in 1996 I bought a pair of Dr. Martens at Nordstrom in Portland, Oregon. I distinctly remember the experience, as it was the first time I spent over $100 of my own money on a pair of shoes. Doc’s doesn’t make half sizes and I couldn’t get the right fit between a size 11 and a size 12. My feet are about a 1/2 size apart. The salesperson offered to split the pairs. One word: SOLD.

  Marketing Lagniappe Takeaway: Do the unexpected little extra to satisfy your customers. Splitting sizes speaks volumes about Nordstrom’s beginnings as a shoe store and its commitment to the customer experience.

  5. This one leaves no fingerprints or dust [PG #706]

  Safelite was submitted via e-mail by Lee Silverstein:

  “As I wrote about in my blog post “ Adding Value Doesn’t Have To Cost A Nickel. ” {Endnote 114} After replacing your damaged windshield, Safelite AutoGlass cleans ALL of your windows and vacuums the interior of your car. Love your site!”

  Here is Lee’s post:

  Adding Value Doesn’t Have To Cost A Nickel

  How do you differentiate “good” service from “great” service? You know it when you experience it, but sometimes it’s difficult to verbalize. I like to explain the difference as “great” service is the type of service that you would tell others about.

  You could walk into a store and be cheerfully greeted, but it’s unlikely that over dinner that evening you would tell your family about the friendly greeting you received while shopping earlier in the day. Now if that same associate had offered to gift-wrap your purchase and then carried it out to your car for you, then that would be an experience worth sharing. So how do companies, and their employees, take the steps to “make a difference?” By adding value.

  Making it standard practice to call other locations to find an out-of-stock item adds value to a customer’s experience. The car dealer that washes your car when you bring it in for service also adds value. And here’s the good news for these businesses: doing these “little things” costs next to nothing!

  While driving the other day, a pebble hit my windshield, leaving a small crack. I contacted my insurance company, Progressive , and they offered to book an appointment for me to have the windshield replaced the following morning; I was very impressed. As promised, my phone rang shortly after 8 am. It was Rich, from Safelite AutoGlass telling me he was on his way to my home to replace my windshield. After only 45 minutes he called me and asked me to meet him outside; he was finished and needed my signature. I walked outside to find him cleaning not just my windshield, but all of my windows! Not only that, but he informed me that he vacuumed the interior of my car as well. By investing 10 extra minutes to vacuum my car and clean my windows, Rich took a good experience and made it a great one. And what did this cost Safelite? Ten minutes of an employees time; a good investment.

  6. A personal touch makes all the difference [PG #673]

  Jim Joseph, author of The Experience Effect {Endnote 115} offers an experience with Lacoste:

  I submit to you a great example of amazing customer service that transformed a brand in my mind… the ultimate purple goldfish.

  Last summer I was visiting Palm Beach with my son. Just looking to get a little R&R. Some friends who live nearby invited us out for dinner one night, which was great, but I hadn’t really packed anything appropriate for my fourteen year old son to wear.

  So we went shopping in town, and of course he didn’t find anything that he liked.. I figured that I would just make due, and we went back to the pool.

  Whi
le we were sitting there he remembered a Lacoste shirt that he thought would be perfect. I was thrilled because he rarely cares how he looks and we were going to be visiting friends.

  We didn’t have a car so we needed to take the hotel shuttle downtown, but I was afraid that we would get there too late. So I called the store only to find out that they were in fact closing for the day.

  I guess the person on the other end of the phone could hear the disappointment in my voice, and she asked me what was wrong. Half way through my explanation, she interrupted me to ask me where we were staying. She offered to bring the shirt to us!

  So I told her the size and color, which they had in stock, and in fact thirty minutes later she personally pulled up to the hotel to hand deliver the shirt.

  That was a wow. Totally made my night, and completely changed my perceptions of the brand. I am now a loyal consumer time and time again, especially for gift giving occasions. Maybe because every time I think of the brand I smile!

  Clearly, the brand knows the importance of customer service in the total experience and has made sure that they deliver on it at the store level. A true purple goldfish!

  7. Fast, Casual and now High Touch [PG #581]

  This example comes courtesy of Jennifer Phelps. In Jenn’s words:

  “Boston Market gives kids balloons (which is nice). They also hand carry your tray to your table which is helpful.”