How to Create Raving Fans Who Love Your Business
by Hannah Jones
Personal Assistant & Marketing Coordinator
The Customer Experience Advantage
We talk a lot on this site about why customers leave, and the subconscious ways that our business practices drive a new generation of customers away. But today, we're going to talk about the opposite. If our customers are harder to please than ever; if they're more demanding than ever, then how do we turn them into raving fans, whose loyalty will future-proof our business and earn a competitive advantage today and in the future?
1. Be a buffet
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"So I'm in Ras Al Khaima, an hour north of Dubai, and I'm walking through the breakfast buffet, and I'm thinking what a perfect analogy for business for business today. You want to give people choices. When you walk in do you want to sit inside or outside? Do you want a continental breakfast? Do you want a full breakfast? And of course at the international hotels you have all these choices of international cuisine at different stations: vegetarian, non-vegetarian, and it's a perfect analogy for business as well. Give people choices. Give people options, not just what to buy but how to buy, how to converse, how to pay. The more options that you have, the more flexible you are, the more attractive you are to your customers and clients. You want to future-proof your business? Learn from a buffet." - David Avrin
Today, creating raving fans is all about choices. And not just the surface-level customizations that are standard in every industry. We need to offer a buying experience specifically tailored to their needs, and that means allowing different experiences for different guests. Your customers are different from one another, and a "wow" experience for one, full of empathy and personability, can be an "oh no" experience for another, who was just trying to get from point a to point b as fast as possible without the extraneous conversation.
2. Stop giving us fake empathy
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"So, here's the worst customer experience behavior we see in business today. It's fake empathy without resolution. When you call a customer service person and you're frustrated about something and it's been the day that I've had and the week that I've had, and you get that same scripted response. 'Well, I understand, Mr. Avrin, how frustrating that might be,' but then they don't solve the problem and you feel like you're talking to a brick wall. Companies spend so much time and effort helping their people with these scripted responses. Stop. Just listen. Resolve the problem or get closer to a resolution. Find someone that can help you do that. But it doesn't do anybody any good (as a matter of fact, it's detrimental to your organization) to continue with scripted responses. We're putting our customer service people in a very, very difficult position. Solve the problem. Give your people the power to resolve issues or find somebody who can." -David Avrin
It's 2023, and we know when your "understanding" or "caring" is obviously scripted and from a binder. What's worse? We know it's not your employees' fault. That binder was passed to them during the training process, and they were schooled on the importance of religiously adhering to the text. You hired a capable human being who can listen and solve problems, and then you took away their opportunity to do so, and we hate it. Empower your people and establish trust with them, because your customers will thank you for it.
3. Follow the Avatar Example.
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"I discovered one of the best customer experience lessons actually comes from the Avatar movies. You know when the blue Navi people want to formalize their personal relationships, they look at each other and they say "I see you." That's true in business as well, we all want to be seen. We want to be acknowledged. But it's more than just the transaction. It's the person behind that. It's the wants, the hopes, the needs. Why are they there? Why are they frustrated? Why are they in a hurry? Because there's something deeper behind that. When we really want to forge real relationships with our customers and clients, where they feel seen and heard and acknowledged, it's not just that they're there and they're waiting in line, but that they're human beings and there's something driving the need for that purchase or that relationship or the pressure back in the office. If we can really connect with that and connect with them, that's customer centricity. That builds legitimate relationships that builds your business." - David Avrin
Understanding today's customer doesn't mean reciting facts about target demographics; it means anticipating their needs, and considering their life outside of your customer journey, because all of that information is what you need to be able to invent a customer experience perfectly tailored to their wants and expectations. Because when you know your customers at that level, your business relationship will be authentic and based in trust, and that creates a raving fan.