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Unique Experience 101

Giovanni — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 22:58:15 +0000

A few years back I was hosting a workshop at the Four Seasons in Dallas. I’ll never forget my experiences there. EVERY business should go to Four Seasons Customer Service University. I remember walking into the hotel restaurant for breakfast. Half asleep, the lady at the front asked for my name and room number, then sat me at my table. Within a few minutes, a waiter came by and said “Hello, Mr. Marsico. How can I help you?” 5 minutes later, a gentleman came out from the back…not sure of his position, but he was cleaning tables, and said “Oh hello, Mr. Marsico! I hope your breakfast is great today!” It took 3 people to use my name before I fully woke up and realized that they had never met me before!! Such a small thing that made a HUGE difference. Later that day… I was in the workshop room and ran out of sharp pencils for the attendees. I leave the workshop room with a bunch of dull pencils and there was a random caretaker walking by…saw that I was a little flustered, he asked if he could help. I told him I needed sharp pencils and he said “No problem. They’ll be right here” and he took care of it for me! I’m sure that’s not his ‘role’, but what an amazing experience. We could all learn a thing or two from the Four Seasons team.

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Unique Experience 101

Supersizing case study #1

Giovanni — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 15:15:47 +0000

As part of my coaching process I teach my clients to find ways to ‘Supersize’… The term comes from the geniuses at McDonald’s who realized that there is HUGE profits and margins in simply asking clients if they want more of what they’ve already ordered. (Smiles are free….and asking your customers to ’supersize’ doesn’t cost anything either!!) This morning I was filling my gas tank like usual. Nothing out of the ordinary. As I go in to pay, the lovely attendant says, “Hi sir! Did you know the lottery jackpot is $17 million?! How many tickets would you like?” And I thought…”Wow. Finally! Someone who gets it” After buying a lottery ticket she asks, “Would you also like a cup of hot coffee? We just brewed it fresh…” A $40 gas fill-up turned into a $50 purchase by the time she was done with me, and all it took was a couple of questions. Cost? $0. Return? 25% increase on the spot. Genius.

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Supersizing case study #1

The “Word-of-Mouth” Paradox

Giovanni — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 19:19:44 +0000

Here’s a fun conversation I have with small business owners. It usually goes something like this… ME – “..so how much of your new business comes from referrals and word of mouth?” SMALL BUSINESS OWNER – “We get around 70-80% of our clients from referrals” (note – any good company gets a tonne of referrals…it can range anywhere from 50-100% depending on the industry) ME – “How much of your marketing budget do you allocate for word of mouth and referrals?” SBO – “Huh? What? What do you mean? I guess, nothing…they just happen.” ME – “Amazing. So, 80% of your business comes from referrals, and you spend all of your money chasing the other 20%?” SBO – “Doh.” The moral of this story? Maybe its time to invest some of your hard earned marketing dollars into a form of marketing THAT ACTUALLY WORKS FOR YOU. (Sorry…I’m a little passionate about this).

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The “Word-of-Mouth” Paradox