The simple recipe for Customer Loyalty

In my younger years, I was convinced that successful people use some kind of special tricks to become rich in no time. So I spent years searching for that secret pathway that was going to lead me to instant success by building a loyal customer base and growing my business in no time. Indeed, I spent years looking for that so-called shortcut until I finally I came to the conclusion that there were no tricks at all.

The one and only secret successful entrepreneurs - or successful people in general - share is that they have learned how to heartfully connect to everything they do, how to give abundantly without expecting anything in return, how to really love their employees and customers, and how to have a great attitude when it comes to ‘generosity’.

With that information in the back of my mind, I tried to leave “a plus” wherever I went, I tried to give my utmost in every relationship. Which didn’t mean that I wasn’t often in doubt as to whether this mindset and this way of doing business was indeed the right one. After all, it required a lot of energy, faith, and trust… and, in the meantime, I kept on struggling to grow my business and to build long term relationships. It wasn’t all as simple as it looked… but deep down inside I knew that this was the right approach. So I kept at it.

Until, all of a sudden, one year ago, all kinds of small, positive things started to happen in my life – one after the other! One of those things just happened this summer. I would here like to share with you what happened because it makes for a wonderful story on how to – nowadays, in this complex and high demanding world – build an amazing bond with your customers, simply by returning back to the basics.

Every year, we plan to spend our summer holidays in Alpenresort Schwarz, an amazing 5-star hotel located in Tirol, Austria. This hotel arose out of nothing: almost 52 years ago, a farmer and a hairdresser decided to start up a small bed and breakfast.  “Zimmer mit flie?end Wasser” (“rooms with running water”) is what it said on their nameplate. Anno 2016, the hotel is classified as one of the most beautiful and luxury Spa-resorts of Europe.

We love to go there because of the friendly Austrian people, because of the beautiful environment and, most of all, because of the excellence we find in every experience they offer (from wellness, over sporting activities, to dining). But the most important reason why we choose to return, over and over again, to this fine hotel is because of the bond we established with the family Pirktl, the owners of the hotel.

Every year, when we visit the hotel, it is amazing to see how the family succeeds in raising their service level. They have really mastered ‘leaving that incredible plus’.

Our personal relationship with the Pirktl family started some years ago, when my former dog managed to destroy a beautiful couch in the hotel room. Very ashamed, I went to Mrs. Pirktl – the “Big Boss” herself – to explain what had happened. I expected an outrageous bill and a future ‘no entrance’ for my dog, but things turned out differently. Instead of this negative scenario, Mrs. Pirktl took advantage of this embarrasing situation to build a long term relationship with us by treating us like one of their most important customers – in spite of the fact that my dog had destroyed their coach. And what she gave, she got back… and much more than that too!

Since then, we have never been to any other hotel in Austria. And so, year by year, our relationship has been growing stronger…

Every time we stay at the hotel, we take the time to write some thank you cards to everyone who served us during our stay: from the cleaning lady, to the waiter, to the Children’s Team and many more… we always bring a small gift to surprise and thank them for their wonderful service!

And couple of years ago, we invited the Pirktl family to our home and introduced them to some important business people so that they were able to promote their wonderful hotel in Belgium.

Last year, we even decided to incorporate this hotel in our incentive program!

And so, over the years, the bond between the Pirktl and the Arteel families became stronger and stronger, until this summer something happened that will stay in our minds forever. 

To thank us in an extraordinary way, this summer, the Pirktls upgraded our room and arranged for us to stay in a luxury suite that is normally only booked by oil sheiks or top business people. And so we ended up in one of the most luxurious suites of the entire hotel, located on a private floor. The room was equipped with two whirlpools, a private sauna, two balconies, two walk-in closets, four televisions, … and, to top it all off, a private butler who served us during our entire stay and who even brought my dog his daily plate of freshly cooked vegetables. And, as if this wasn’t enough, on top of that, the family Pirktl organized a drink to celebrate our years of friendship and overloaded us with many more gifts.

There is no need to spell out to you how over the moon we were – especially knowing that, last year, they took care of more than 90.000 overnight stays!

Every day, the hotel is filled with more than 60% return customers and 40% new customers. And regardless of the economic downturn, this hotel – year after year – has been managing to achieve a yearly occupancy rate of more than 91%! These are astounding numbers for the hotel business!

So what is their secret? How does the Pirktl family manage to build such an amazingly high level of customer loyalty?

Let me share with you 9 of their most important secrets:

1. The hotel is both a family-owned and a family-run business. 

During your stay as a guest, you meet at least one member of the family every day. The Pirktls make a point out of starting a small conversation with each of their guests to make sure they are satisfied on every level. This involvement and engagement creates a tremendous bond with each and every guest, as well as with their personnel. You won’t find the Pirktls in their office or in meetings – no, you will always find them right at the center of their hotel, surrounded by their guests and employees. 

How many businesses do you know (except from the really small ones) where you have such an easy access to the business owners or the management? And if you do, how does it feel or how do you experience this? What about your own business? How many businesses, do you think, have disconnected from their core – being their customers and their employees – and are now primarily focusing on numbers and processes as their most important goal?

1. It doesn’t stop by fine words – action is taken. 

Not only do the Priktls listen carefully to the feedback from their customers, but they also take action. This makes their customers feel even more appreciated and, as a result, it becomes an important part of the value creation process. 

How many times have you been asked as an employee or a customer to complete a survey? And how many times have you had the impression that real action was taken based on your feedback? Or that you were informed about the next steps that the organization would take as a result of your input?

1. ‘Love’ is their most important value throughout their organization. 

The Pirktls, as well as their total workforce, truly love their guests. Every initiative they take, everything they do, has been initiated form deep down inside, from their heart. They genuinely care for their customers, and this way of ‘caring’ is reflected in every detail throughout the hotel. 

Can you name 5 businesses where you have the feeling that the staff and management really care about you as a customer? Where you have the feeling that they really go the extra mile to meet your needs, and connect with you in a loving way?

1. Recognition is the code word. 

The 250 Alpenresort Schwarz employees not only receive lots of recognition from their management, but they also receive lots of recognition from the hotel guests. If you give the very best of yourself all the time, customers sense this, and will return this by recognizing you in amazing ways – it is self-reinforcing. What you give, will come back to you. 

What about the company you work for: do you get or give recognition on a regular basis?  Or do you express your sincere appreciation if you experience a great service when visiting a hotel or other venue?

1. Focus on quality-quality-quality! 

I never visited a hotel where the standards of quality are so high. From the food to the service to the accommodation: the Pirktls dazzle their customers with their excellent level of quality, reflected in every detail. Indeed, when it comes to quality, they don’t compromise. Every euro they earn is reinvested to raise the level of service. Every time we return, we discover new tiny things that they put into place to raise the WOW-experience. But they also keep on investing in big things, such as their accommodation itself. This already resulted in a 32.000m2 hotel park, with a more than 5500m2 wellness area, and a new sauna village of 660m2. That is why a visit to this hotel will never become a commodity, but will always be an extraordinary experience. And most importantly: all of this for a very fair price! 

What about the company you work for? Or what about your job? Do you continue to invest in yourself and your company to raise the level of quality you offer?

1. One mission: “Freude geben, freude bekommen” (“Giving joy is receiving joy”) 

Every employee – from the cleaning lady to the cook – is connected to that one mission: “giving joy is receiving joy”. Their communication is built around this one mission, as is everything else they do. Next to this mission, they carry out 9 other values: extreme service-minded focus, cordiality, friendliness, honesty, lead by example, innovation, passion, sense of responsibility and respect. 

What about your company, can you rephrase the mission of your company in maximum three sentences? And is this mission equally clear for every employee? Do they know what they are contributing to, and why they do what they do?

1. They really care about the planet and its people. 

Alpenresort Schwarz is located in a beautiful, natural and quiet environment, and this close-to-nature approach is also reflected in everything they do. They support the local farmers by deliberately doing business with them instead of buying from big concerns (just to keep prices low) and they support the climate by investing in new solar and rainwater systems to reduce their carbon footprint. On top of that, they designed a total health plan for their employees, and they continue to invest in them by offering them all kinds of training courses throughout the year. Alpenresort Schwarz won several prices for their sustainable operation procedures. 

How many businesses or managers have lost touch with what sustainability really embodies?

1. The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is ‘that little extra’. 

When you arrive as a guest in the hotel, you are treated as a VIP – regardless of which room or package you booked. Alpenresort Schwarz build their offers in such a way that everyone’s expectations are met, and even exceeded. Whether you come with your family and kids, or you want to play golf, or you want to relax, or you bring your dog with you… everything is taken care of in amazing ways. Because their range of offers is so extended, I would like to invite you to check out their website: www.schwarz.at 

Every customer has different needs, and values different things. In which way do you craft your offers? Are they truly based on the needs and wants of your customers?

1. Regardless of all they achieved, they stay very humble. 

What strikes me most, is that, after all, the family stays very humble. They are there to serve you, and to make your stay one of the most fabulous experiences you have ever had. Notwithstanding their success, they stay close to their employees and customers. 

How many business owners or top-managers do you know who – notwithstanding their success –  nevertheless stay humble, and remain easy to access? 

The purpose of this article is, in the first place, to draw your attention to the fact that building a loyal customer base can be quite simple, if you apply some basic rules.

It all starts by doing the things a little bit better than the competition, by giving that little bit more and by working with wholehearted people. So, to create such a wholehearted workforce, you need to first of all hire the right people – people whose values are in line with your company values. And once you have found the right people to work for you, it is important to appreciate them on a regular basis and give them the feeling that they really matter. 

So go back to the basics by learning how to re-connect with your employees. This is the first step before investing in any kind of new software system or procedure. And once you are able to connect from heart to heart, the rest will follow easily. And by ‘the rest’ I mean: a loyal customer base, engaged employees, low absenteeism, higher profit margins, … 

So this brings us back to where we started our story: that secret successful entrepreneurs share was nothing mysterious or complex – just as the Pirktls, they merely learned how to heartfully connect to everything they do, how to give abundantly without expecting anything in return, how to really love their employees and their customers, and how to simply have a great attitude when it comes to ‘generosity’. 

Nathalie Arteel

Entrepreneur - Motivational expert