Focusing only on first impressions can leave a bad taste in a customer’s mouth. It is often said that the first impressions we make play a significant role in determining if customers return. I don’t necessarily agree. I say an average experience can be expensive, but a great experience is priceless. It can only be a great experience if customers’ expectations are exceeded from start to finish. I have seen and experienced hundreds of companies that put a tremendous amount of effort upfront only to make everything that follows inconsistent, insincere, and sterile.
Consulting and speaking on customer service affords me luxuries I probably wouldn’t be able to enjoy otherwise. One of the best perks is working with outstanding hotels, resorts, and restaurants. Typically, the companies with a budget for continuous customer service training are the ones that already provide it at a high level. They realize the better the service the less price becomes an issue.
I often work with Nemacolin Woodlands Resort in Farmington, Pennsylvania, a worldclass customer service organization. A room in their new building, Falling Rock, can run over $1,000 a night. While Nemacolin redefines the word “experience” with their awardwinning architecture, PGA golf course, shooting academy, spa, and Hummer driving school, it is their people and attention to detail that make Falling Rock a superior customer service organization.
Take the valet team. When you depart, the experience isn’t over. You may find your car clean when they pull it around. Or, when you get in, your favorite soda may be in the cup holder (realized from what you ordered in the restaurant or what was missing from your mini bar). There is a good chance MapQuest directions for home will be on the dashboard. They may fill the gas tank (with permission to charge it to your room) and organize the inside by putting car casualties neatly in a box. I don’t know if you’re like me, but I have three boys and a Suburban with a third row I won’t go near. If it was alive it’s dead now, and if it was dead its growing.
So picture this. You’re leaving Falling Rock, and you’re delighted that your car is clean, there’s a cold can of ginger ale in the cup holder, you have MapQuest directions, and you found that lost CD. You call your spouse to talk about this place and all the amazing things you experienced.
The real value here is that Falling Rock left you with such an incredible last impression you forgot at check-in they had you down for a double instead of a king, or didn’t have the restaurant reservations, or some other service defect every company is guilty of. But with such an incredible close, the only thing you can remember is how this place delivered an unforgettable experience.
John DiJulius III is the author of Secret Service, Hidden Systems that Deliver Unforgettable Customer Service, president of John Robert’s Spa, and president of Minding Your Business, a business consulting firm, specializing in helping companies become World Class Customer Service Organizations. You can reach John at 216-839-1430 or john@johndijulius.com.
