The Value of Quality Service

A good friend, the late Father Bob Scott, delivered an annual homily entitled “The Good Stop Sermon” in which he shared tales of memorable trips, dinners, and events with friends and family. “The Good Stop Sermon” evolved from tales his father shared of moments that were good stops in their lives, special occasions that created unforgettable memories. A common feature of these good stops was the positive role people played in creating these memories. At each good stop, quality service provided the family value and a reminder of that wonderful time.

Reflect on the notable experiences in your life: exceptional meals, travel adventures, sporting events, concerts, or theater performances. Terrific service most likely contributed to that unforgettable event. An individual did something that differentiated that event from countless others and created a one-of-a-kind moment that you were eager to recount with friends, family, and work associates. How can you inspire the people in your organization to create unique moments for your clients? How can your staff produce extraordinary experiences that clients are excited to share with others? How can you ensure that people remember their experience with your business as a “Good Stop”?

Begin by focusing on quality in every aspect of your business. Encourage your people to be proactive to create special moments and deliver random acts of kindness. Ensure that quality service is the norm, where your staff looks forward to creating exceptional experiences for people each day. Empower your people to go beyond expectations to offer service and deliver occasions customers will not forget.

Recall times when someone has gone to great lengths to provide individualized attention to guarantee an experience that exceeded your expectations. Quality service becomes a distinctive feature of your organization through constant attention and training. Employees must understand that quality service provides value for the customer and creates a lasting connection with the business. Identify, recruit, and hire people committed to caring for the customer, then train, develop, and model actions to reinforce the importance of service. Ensure staff take pride that things are done differently in your organization. Treat your customers with kindness, respect, and outstanding attention, ensuring they become customers for life.

Authenticity is essential in assisting consumers. Customers are perceptive and will promptly switch to a competitor if they are being treated in an insincere fashion. Create and develop relationships with customers built on trust. Receiving quality service from a trusted relationship leads to positive customer reviews that are far more valuable than any advertising campaign. A recent PWC report (PWC: Customer Experience is Everything) stated that “among U.S. customers, 65% find a positive experience with a brand to more influential than marketing.”

Focus attention on the smallest details to turn an average encounter into a special event. In the early days of FedEx, a customer service agent chartered a plane (without asking for approval from management) to guarantee a customer’s wedding dress was delivered before her wedding day. Word spread quickly that this upstart delivery service went far beyond expectations to provide exceptional service. This action attracted new accounts and increased investments, allowing FedEx to thrive and become the company it is today. Emphasize how quality service prompts customers to remember your business as a place where they had a “Good Stop”.

In his book Setting the Table, restaurateur Danny Meyer wrote:

“In restaurants, you stand a much better chance of ending up with the most customers when you first have the best employees. The best employees embrace serving others with grace, kindness, caring, determination, and integrity. High-performance firms strive to hire capable people who want to serve, who want to excel, and who are resilient and emotionally strong when encountering the rigors, fatigue, repetitiveness–—and rude customers–—common in-service work. Companies need to hire the person, not the resume; assessing a candidate’s core values is the starting point.”

Providing extraordinary service requires commitment from all parts of your organization. Encourage employees to strive for excellence, learn from mistakes, and maintain a focus on providing the best service experience possible. Develop strong connections with your people that allow you to determine and prevent minor issues from developing into major problems. Address problems early on before they escalate into something unmanageable and do not tolerate behavior from employees that reflects poorly upon your organization.

The city of Los Angeles offers more than 1,000 hotels, from major hospitality chains to fancy boutique locations, to small family-owned locations. Some hotels spend enormous sums on advertising, while others offer lavish decorations in rooms and lobbies to attract guests. The owners of The Magic Castle Hotel have taken a different approach. They renovated a 1950’s era apartment complex and provide guests a magical experience they will not forget. Through authentic hospitality, the hotel offers guests reasonable rates, free snacks (including full-size candy bars to satisfy anyone’s craving), laundry service at no charge (artfully wrapped and complemented with fresh lavender), and most impressive, a “Popsicle Hotline” where free popsicles are delivered poolside to make your day. The hotel’s website states, “Guests’ needs are met. They are comfortable. They feel heard and satisfied. This is how you receive the Certificate of Excellence from Trip Advisor for nine consecutive years.” The leadership of the Magic Castle Hotel understands the importance of creating an indelible experience for guests based on quality service that distinguishes their hotel from competitors.

A well-used expression states, “You only have one chance to make a first impression”. The early FedEx service agent, the employees of Danny Meyer’s restaurants, and the staff at the Magic Castle Hotel all work to deliver quality service and a great first impression for their customers. What first impression do you want people to remember of your organization? How can you ensure your people do everything possible to provide quality service and create value that will ensure customers use your service again and offer positive reviews? How can you instill a desire in your people to think of what the customer wants even before the customer asks for it and to think of your business as a place where they had a “Good Stop”?

Contact me to learn more about the tools that DA Advisory Services provides for your organizational development needs: from the value created from quality service to understanding how the behaviors of your employees and teams affect your entire organization.

This post first appeared on the DA Advisory Services blog at: https://www.daadvisoryservices.com/post/focus-on-quality-to-create-value