Word of Mouth. It’s that magic businesses strive to build.
But how?
Last night I went out for dinner to a nice steak place. I was…well, to be honest, I was a royal pain in the arse. See, I’m getting toward the end of Whole30.
Have you heard of Whole30? It’s 30 days with no grains, legumes, dairy, sugar or alcohol. (Yes, really.)
It’s been challenging and exhilarating. Whole30 has also made going out for dinner incredibly difficult. Steak places are supposed to be pretty easy. A piece of meat, simple veggies, maybe a plain potato.
Except at this restaurant, nothing was easy. The steaks were rubbed with a mixture that contained sugar. All the veggies were prepared with at least one of the no-no ingredients.
I felt like a Sally. Ordering a meal that should have been simple was ridiculously complex.
And the staff was…wonderful. The waitress had nothing but a positive response and made me feel like she genuinely cared about getting my order right. She even brought out the manager and a sous chef to ensure my meal was prepared according to our needs.
Listening to your customers and making them feel cared for? That’s the all-important first half of the one-two punch for increasing word of mouth.
And lots of businesses get that right. They genuinely care for their customers when they are IN the business. Sometimes that alone increases word of mouth for a business.
Caring for customers IN the business may not be enough.
To truly unleash the power of word of mouth, the best of the best marry personal engagement in the business with follow up afterwards.
AND they make sure the follow up is equally personal and engaging.
Did you ever get an automatic survey email saying “we value your feedback?” Did you feel valued? Nah…me neither.
At the end of the day, humans are wired for connection. The steps you take to value customers as individuals can transform how they feel about your business to create genuine relationships.
That restaurant gave me an amazing experience, yet they failed to do anything that might cement long-term loyalty. They are relying on me to do the work…which may or may not work out for them.
Why miss the opportunity to build those real relationships?
Deeper customer engagement is rewarding on all levels. It’s personally fulfilling for you and your team. AND highly profitable.
Start building those fulfilling, profitable relationships and unleash the one-two punch of word of mouth for your business.
They jumped thru hoops and you still say it wasn’t good enough because they didn’t take the next step to woo you to come back. Honestly, they’re probably glad you won’t be coming back. You sound like a nightmare to deal with, by your own admission.
I’m not trying to be a troll but honestly seeing this from a different angle. Not all customers are the right customers for a business. Sometimes the best thing to do is give your best customer service (as they did for you) but not encourage them to return.
Hi! You make a totally fair point and not trolling in the slightest! Your comment actually made me laugh, I was a pain.
You’re also exactly right. Not all customers are the right customers and customer selection matters.
Unfortunately, I’ve also been to that restaurant when there were no special requests and I’ve been a model customer. And they still didn’t offer anything to reward loyal customers.
The larger point is that sometimes a small shift can make a big difference for cultivating loyalty. Making sure you’re setting your business up for deeper customer engagement is a great place to start. Thanks for your comment!