Raving Fans - Why Satisfied Customers Will No Longer Do
This was my fourth or fifth time reading this book, and again I got something new out of it. This time around, the thing that most stuck out to me was systems. If a company truly wants to create raving fans, they need great designs. It's one thing to go above and beyond for clients, but if the follow-up and product aren't up to snub, you can forget about a raving fan. Ken Blanchard does it again in this book. He talks about satisfied customers who are just waiting for something better to come along. The thought of no news is good news is just a myth. If you aren't hearing from your clients, they're likely satisfied or unhappy. The book has three secrets of creating a raving fan.
The first secret: vision. Companies need to have an idea for what they see their customer service as. In most industries, the standard is evasiveness and bad results. Companies have the opportunity to dispel this issue and create a fantastic experience for their customers. They deserve this; business can be complicated and confusing. Companies need the systems to make sure clients always feel like they're best interests are in my mind. First, have a vision of your customer's experience with your company.
Now, begin asking your clients what their vision is for your relationship. We need to reach out to our clients and ask them what they expect from our customer service. They may have something different in mind. If we don't ask, we won't know and could be wasting their time or ours. By finding out and always giving plus one percent, you can truly find out what your company needs to do to create a raving fan experience. Those are the last two secrets: ask your customers and always give plus one percent. Do just a little more over time, and eventually, you'll be 100 times better than the competition. He talks about this extensively: plus one percent. We don't want to over promise and under deliver, so we need to do a little bit more and know we can execute those ideals.
If you have raving fan clients at the end of the day, you'll be a raving fan of your business/job and enjoy doing it. It's a win-win for everyone involved. So my question is, what can we do today to create more raving fan clients?
