Delivering the no-compromise personal touch
At a time when a lot of customers seem to be holding back and wondering what the financial crisis is going to mean for them, savvy business players are on the offensive and rethinking new ways to compete and thrive through tough times. And when the strategy is targeting the heart of the customer service experience, it can be just what salons and spas need to create that needed lift through the holidays and beyond. What's even more enticing about this strategy is that it costs little to implement.
If you're thinking, "We already do the personal-touch thing," think again. If you and every employee in your business were given the ultimatum to deliver true and authentic no-compromise personal-touch experiences or lose every customer to a competitor, how much better would everyone perform? What level of personal touch would your clients experience now? Describe it. Define it. Systematize it. Then, hold everyone accountable for delivering it all day, every day.
Indifference is the nemesis of customer service. That's right, indifference - that "attitude" clients encounter every day from employees that take their needs, time, money and loyalty for granted. Indifference may be present a lot or a little, but it's a sure bet that it's lurking somewhere in your business - and you need to find it and fix it fast.
Delivering the no-compromise personal touch to every client is a game changer. It ups the ante and channels your team's energy around the single most important asset your business has, your clients. It turns a visit to your salon/spa into something significantly more special and meaningful. It "serves" clients in the most nurturing way possible by anticipating their needs and delivering the unexpected. And what environment is more suited to be a haven from the stress of the world than a salon/spa where touch is everything?
I know I'm preaching the obvious here. I also know you can do better - a lot better - delivering the personal touch if only you and your team take it on with no compromise as your one and only standard.
The Holidays are only weeks away. If delivering the no-compromise personal touch to your clients is just one puzzle piece to making it through these tough times unscathed, go for it. If it generates just $1 more in sales, go for it. If it sells one more gift card, go for it. If it puts a smile on a client's face, no compromise says, "If it needs to be done, get it done."
Pass this email on to your business colleagues, managers and friends.
Neil Ducoff, Strategies founder & CEO
I just read a news release about a small suburban Chicago retailer whose strategy is to defy the forecasts for a gloomy holiday season by delivering that special personal touch to customers. Sue Opeka is the owner of The Present Moment that sells affirmational and motivational gifts such as placards celebrating family and friends. Opeka has focused on making her store a place where customers can come for a free cup of coffee, a cookie and a break from all the bad news on television and in the papers. Does her personal-touch strategy work? It sure does. Sales at her store have been up 15 percent for the past four months.At a time when a lot of customers seem to be holding back and wondering what the financial crisis is going to mean for them, savvy business players are on the offensive and rethinking new ways to compete and thrive through tough times. And when the strategy is targeting the heart of the customer service experience, it can be just what salons and spas need to create that needed lift through the holidays and beyond. What's even more enticing about this strategy is that it costs little to implement.
If you're thinking, "We already do the personal-touch thing," think again. If you and every employee in your business were given the ultimatum to deliver true and authentic no-compromise personal-touch experiences or lose every customer to a competitor, how much better would everyone perform? What level of personal touch would your clients experience now? Describe it. Define it. Systematize it. Then, hold everyone accountable for delivering it all day, every day.
Indifference is the nemesis of customer service. That's right, indifference - that "attitude" clients encounter every day from employees that take their needs, time, money and loyalty for granted. Indifference may be present a lot or a little, but it's a sure bet that it's lurking somewhere in your business - and you need to find it and fix it fast.
Delivering the no-compromise personal touch to every client is a game changer. It ups the ante and channels your team's energy around the single most important asset your business has, your clients. It turns a visit to your salon/spa into something significantly more special and meaningful. It "serves" clients in the most nurturing way possible by anticipating their needs and delivering the unexpected. And what environment is more suited to be a haven from the stress of the world than a salon/spa where touch is everything?
I know I'm preaching the obvious here. I also know you can do better - a lot better - delivering the personal touch if only you and your team take it on with no compromise as your one and only standard.
The Holidays are only weeks away. If delivering the no-compromise personal touch to your clients is just one puzzle piece to making it through these tough times unscathed, go for it. If it generates just $1 more in sales, go for it. If it sells one more gift card, go for it. If it puts a smile on a client's face, no compromise says, "If it needs to be done, get it done."
Pass this email on to your business colleagues, managers and friends.
Neil Ducoff, Strategies founder & CEO and author of No-Compromise Leadership
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