Is Tipping Getting Out of Hand?

When many new servers first start waiting on tables, they believe that in order to earn larger tips, they have to deliver an exceptional customer experience. The longer they work in the dining room, however, the more they come to realize that most guests have a specific tipping percentage in…
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A Photogenic Experience

Have you ever heard the expression, “Do it for the ‘gram?” According to UrbanDictionary.com, a website devoted to cataloging modern slang, it is a saying that is “used by people, mainly teens, who use Instagram a lot.” That definition goes back to 2013, positively ancient history by Internet standards, but…
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Customize Your Customer Experience

When you dine at a restaurant, you want the staff to look at you as more than just someone who’s just hungry. When you buy a car, you hope the salesperson understands that you really do care more than just getting from point-a to point-b. And when you plan a…
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Customer Service Starts with Company Culture

While we should hope that every business wants to deliver a top-shelf customer experience, complete with great products, convenience, and a well-trained staff, far too many fall short of these lofty standards. Worse still, there are many companies that seem to have accepted their shortcomings as being necessary, especially in…
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Quality, Competence, and Consistency

Do customers trust your business? Can they be confident that when they purchase something from you, they’re going to get what they expect every time? Do they know that your employees are going to do their jobs well to facilitate that experience? Every business owner wants to believe the answers…
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Becoming the Standard

Many trademarks and company names have become so successful that they are now synonymous with their class of products or services. There’s even a term for this process: genericide. You know of many examples and might not even realize: Kleenex is often substituted for any facial tissue, Aspirin for any…
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Elevating Your Customer Experience

Shep Hyken is back at it again with another great blog about the difference between good and great, and why this is an important distinction when trying to maintain customer loyalty. As he cites, his “customer service research found that the top reason customers are most likely to come back…
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Building a Customer-Centric Foundation

The most successful companies are the ones that place the customer experience above all other considerations. Yes, that even means over maximizing profits or emphasizing growth. Those customer-centric businesses understand that you need a strong foundation before you can build the rest on top of it. They understand that profits…
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Good Habits vs Natural Gifts

We’ve all heard of someone described as a natural-born salesperson: that man or woman who seems to have an uncanny mix of empathy, conviction, improvisational skill, and cunning—that knack for relating to people, projecting confidence, possessing the ability to think on his or her feet, and strong judgement. They seem…
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