A Response (Maybe Rebuttal) to Last Week's Tip About American Airlines

Last week I wrote about getting WOW'ed by American Airlines when they greeted me on the jet bridge and escorted me to my gate just to say thanks for all my business. (I have flown 73,000+ miles this year on American Airlines.) The point was not so much about American Airlines, but about doing the unexpected for a good customer.

Well, you won't believe the assortment of comments I received over that last tip. First of all, I found out that American Airlines doesn't have all raving fans like myself. One person wondered why I could be loyal to an airline that flies old equipment, has many unhappy employees, a declining customer base, and service substandard to the discount airlines like Jet Blue. Another person accused me of just being a big spender with American while the rest of the passengers have to suffer with inferior service.

The state of the airline industry is best described as in turmoil - deregulation , 9/11, and the success of the Southwest business model have changed everything. BUT that's not the point. The point is simple: surprise and WOW your best customer. YES, your best customers. Not all customers should be treated the same way. Some customers are simply more valuable than others and deserve preferential treatment.

One of my core beliefs is that loyalty can not be taken for granted in business today. We must look for ways to make our customers want to come back. When someone does something extra, out of the ordinary, or something they just didn't have to do, it creates either a bond or an obligation to go back to that business.

I agree with a lot of the facts I heard from critics of American Airlines, but nonetheless American Airlines is worth my loyalty. Two weeks ago I flew from Boston to Atlanta through Chicago. Out of my way, Yes! But with all of the turmoil in the airline industry, I need a carrier that I am important to, flies to as many of my destinations as possible, and knows and appreciates the amount of business I give them.

The key word is knows. I can't believe how many retail businesses just don't know who their best customers are. We know the customers who give us a hard time and the ones who buy a lot at any given time. But unless we have a good POS tracker of customer information, we truly don't know who our best customers are.

American Airlines knows who their best customers are. They print my frequent flyer status on every document, thereby informing every employee that I have contact with. It's nice. It makes me feel good. They give me extra perks like guaranteed seats, first class upgrades, or allowing me to board the plane first. Yes, the planes are old and I don't get a TV at my seat. But the bigger question, the most important question, is what are you doing for your best customers? Do you treat them all the same?

All I can tell you is that if I spent $10,000 a year with a business, I would like to be appreciated a little bit more than the customer who spends $50 one time. Is it fair? You be the judge.

It's not possible to be a retailer without hearing the phrase, "but, I'm one of your best customers". Thos customers are telling us that they expect more. And they should. They deserve it. Don't let them down. American Airlines might not be perfect but they didn't let me down and they made me feel like a King for a day.

I Just Got WOWed!!

I just had the BEST customer experience I have ever had and learned a valuable lesson that all of us can use. As hard as it might be to believe, the experience came from a traditional airline, American Airlines. We all know the problems that the airline industry has had with the combination of deregulation which opened the door to countless competitors, and then 9/11. Most legacy line airlines are losing money and the quality of air travel has reached an all time low. Maybe that is why my experience was so unexpected.

Let me share exactly what happened. I was getting off a flight with my wife from Atlanta to Chicago. As we walked onto the jet bridge, there was a well dressed professional woman holding up a sign with my name on it. I said that was me and wondered if anything was wrong. (You get scared that something is wrong with a family member or something.) Barbara Anderson, a customer relations representative, assured me that everything was fine but she was going to be escorting us to the next gate with her associate Arlene Bonds.

Sure enough, at the top of the jet bridge was Arlene Bonds in an electric cart waiting to whisk us to our next gate which would have been a long walk. I asked both Barbara and Arlene why were they doing this? I wondered if we were the one millionth customer or something silly like that. The response was that I was a very good customer, was traveling with my wife, and American Airlines just wanted to say thank you for all the business I had given them. (I am still trying to figure out what my wife had to do with everything because we rarely travel together.)

There were no hidden agendas or anything for me to sign or join - it was truly a random act of kindness that I will never forget.

When was the last time you did something unexpected and nice to some of your best customers? Things you don't have to do but you do, things you don't need to do but do, things that will make an ordinary moment into an extraordinary and memorable moment. I am constantly preaching a simple philosophy that if you want word-of-mouth advertising, give them something to talk about. I have told the story, at least 20 times in the last few days. What story are your customers sharing with their friends about experiences in your business?

Do the unexpected. It's what people talk about. Barbara and Arlene didn't know that I was a writer and my experience would be shared with all of my readers worldwide, including my Staples.com column and all of the magazines I write for (47 at last count). That's about 3 million people! (I don't think they all read it but that is the subscriber count.)

It's not as easy an exercise as you might think. But maybe just a phone call saying thanks might be a good start. Let's all work to make it memorable, like American Airlines did for me. I will never forget the experience.

The Power of Mastermind Groups

Someone asked me the other day what the most important thing was they could do to improve their business, I responded quickly with the "mastermind group". The person looked at me as if I were speaking a foreign language. I tried to clarify my statement, thinking that perhaps he was unaware of the term because mastermind groups do go by many different names. "A focus group, a study group, or a common board," I suggested as alternative names but there was still no acknowledgement of what I was talking about. I then started asking other businesses that I work with how familiar they were with this concept.

The ones that knew what I was talking about couldn't stop singing the praise of the concept but most (8 out of 11) had no idea what I was talking about. So let me explain this powerful concept and how it can affect your business. A mastermind group is a group of business people who meet on a regular basis to discuss issues about their businesses. There are many different varieties of these groups. They come in different sizes and shapes but the impact of these groups are amazing. It is also something I have been doing for my own business for the last 10 years and will never stop. Let me explain the varieties and how they work.

The first type, I'll call it, Type 1 is the most basic. It consists of a few like businesses coming together on a semi-regular basis to just share some ideas. Many times these take place before a trade show. The group, consisting of businesses from a wide geographical area, tends to be less formal and meets without a planned agenda.

The second type of group is also informal and will consist of different types of businesses from the same geographic area. The makeup of this group might be an automobile dealership, a jeweler, a landscaper, or any type of business of similar size. This kind of group generally will discuss issues that are common to them but not industry-specific. These groups, however, can be more formal and there are companies that will serve as professional facilitators.

The most effective mastermind group, which I'll call Type 3, is generally larger and more formal. This is the group of 6 to 15 business owners from the same industry that meet from 2-to-4 times a year. Sometimes these groups will meet for a whole day or for a weekend twice a year and then meet via a telephone conference call another couple of times during the year. They are all people from the same industry, such as all gift store owners, or jewelers, which makes the conversation even more relevant. They always have an agenda and will discuss a wide variety of topics from payroll costs, new lines, interesting ways to promote, problems in the industry, or problems in their own business that they need some help with. These groups always have a paid professional facilitator who handles meeting organization, planning and keeping the flow discussion of discussion on topic. The real magic happens because these various businesses become role models and resources for one another.

One of the most powerful tools is when these businesses submit their financial data and an independent professional summarizes all of the data so that benchmarks can be established in a variety of different categories. Wouldn't it be nice to know what your contemporaries are spending on advertising? Or how much inventory you really need in order to be successful? No one's actual figures are revealed to one another, the independent compiles them to create financial benchmarks. Every business knows their numbers and it's interesting to compare your performance to the overall performance of the group.

Several industry groups use this practice as a matter of course. Community banks and credit unions, for example, religiously gauge their performance against national benchmarks on a number of key measures including market share, product sales, cross-sales of products to individual customers, household penetration and many others.

I have found that the reason why these groups are so successful is that this is where new learning and change can really occur. For some reason learning something from our peers has more impact on us than any other type of learning, not to mention the fact that the members can take the time to explain how they actually do it! Because of that, I have decided to use this forum as a collector or matchmaker for different businesses that would like to get involved in this type of endeavor. If we have enough people from a specific industry I would even consider helping to facilitate a group or two.

I suggest these mastermind groups because of the power of the concept and the effects that it can have on your business. Start off small and if I can help as a clearing house and bringing some people together, you can thank me later.

It’s Just a Matter of Words

The other night I went out for dinner with my wife at a local restaurant. The restaurant we selected would be considered a little better than popular price. It wasn’t formal but it wasn’t a family restaurant either. We got to the restaurant late and there were a number of open tables. When we walked in, the hostess brought us to a small table, but there were a number of open booths so we asked if we could take one of the booths. The hostess explained that the server covering the booths had a number of parties that night and wanted to give the other server some tables to be fair. I said that we preferred a booth. She then begrudgingly said, “Alright, I’ll let you have the booth.”

My dining experience started out on the wrong foot. The problem was the hostess just looked at us as demanding unreasonable customers. Was I pleasant? Yes. Was I self centered and only thinking about my needs and wants? Yes! But I am the customer — I am spending my money and I have a choice of places I can go. Was that business customer focused? NO. She made us feel about as important as a check mark on the hostess’ table tally sheet. I am the customer. It’s about me. Not you!

It’s a meaningless little encounter but it was enough to turn us off to that place of business. We feel no reason to return which is sad because the meal was actually very good. What could the hostess have done differently?

First, just honor my request without sharing your problems with me. Second, try to enhance the experience with the right words that are comforting, making me feel important, wanted, and professional. Try these and feel the difference:

• Would you prefer a booth or table?Of course you can have a booth. It really is a much better choice.
• Or you can use a little self-deprecating humor such as: How silly of me. I should have brought you to a booth right of way. I prefer them when I go out.
• Certainly, which booth would you prefer?
• How about a little honesty? No problem you are our guest. Which booth would you prefer?
• I’m sorry, by all means, which would you prefer?

When I started to think about the situation I realized how so many times it’s just a few little words that can change a customer’s mood, alter their attitude toward buying, or trigger a positive response from a customer. I jotted down some of those mood altering phrases that when used are powerful in almost any business.

10. That’s an ideal choice
9. I wish we could (for those difficult situations)
8. May I (May I put you on hold, May I call you by your name,
May I suggest)
7. Allow me to....
6. How do you feel about …
5. Tell me more about that....
4. Which means … (Creates clarity and will take you to benefit of
the product)
3. We take it personally
2. We know how you feel. We feel the same way
1. Thanks for … (Coming in … the feed back … considering us …)

Try these and watch the reactions. One word of caution: as powerful as these expressions might be, if delivered poorly, they will not work. The tone of your voice, the facial expression, the body language, the level of enthusiasm and professionalism can make all of the difference. But the right words spoken with sincerity will turn poor customer service into award winning service and have your customers returning again and again. Try it and let me know how it works.