Walk into the lobby of a Westin Hotel and your nose knows the scent suddenly shifts from the “smell of the street” to a signature fragrance called “White Tea.”
Reach the checkout counter of Dallas garden center Nicholson-Hardie and you can pet a big calico cat sprawled across the counter complete with business card with the title “House Cat.”
Stroll around a Bass Pro Shop and take in the sporting goods displays amplified by such visual desserts as a giant fish tank and museum quality wildlife dioramas.
An upscale jewelry shop has employees wear formal evening attire.
What’s happening in these pictures? Enterprises magnifying the power of the five senses to augment their customers’ service experiences.
When realtors suggest baking an apple pie before holding an open house, when cookie shops pipe their kitchen aroma onto the sidewalk, and when upscale retail stores put a pianist at a baby grand on the sales floor, they all are declaring the common sense of uncommon senses.
Take a close look at the “touch me” features of your unit or organization. Customers enjoy a tactile connection.
What does your enterprise sound like? What do customers hear in the background when they call?
Is your parking lot interesting? Does your unit entrance “welcome” in an obvious and positive way? Have a friend “shop” your facility and count smiles.
If you turned your five senses loose to audit your service experience, what would they come back and recommend?