Commentary

Reining in customers with a little delight

Chip Bell shares a childhood experience that reflects on how to effectively rein in customers and why the retail customer experience should be a partnership rather than a dictatorship.

Photo by iStock.com

November 12, 2018 by Chip Bell — Customer Loyalty Consultant/Author, Chip Bell Group

My sister, brother and I rode our horse, Queen, bareback as kids on the farm where I grew up. There was a sense of wild abandon to be at the mercy of the horse since you had limited control over where she went or how fast she ran. Mostly you held onto her mane for dear life! And, if it was late in the day and she was heading in the direction of the barn, the outcome was inevitable. Queen was going to take you there whether you were interested or not.

On some occasions we harnessed Queen to a homemade sled to pull us over terraced open fields and down winding dirt roads. For that adventure, a bridle and harness were required since Queen could sling you into a tree or race at a speed you were not ready to risk. We were taught by our horse-loving dad that if we worked with the horse in an encouraging, positive way, she would joyfully give us the ride of our lives.

When I work with organizations seeking guidance about how to effectively rein in customers, I think about Queen. Not that retail customers need to be bridled in the same fashion as a horse but rather there are occasions they need to be advised of rules or told "no." Upscale hotels may allow dogs in guests' rooms, for example, but they forbid guests from bringing a dog to the dining room, unless it is a service dog. Walmart will not allow you to grab that stocking ladder to get an item off the top high shelf.

How do you rein in customers in a fashion they do not perceive as the command of a wannabe police or nagging parent? Innovative organizations start in the customers' shoes and work to see the service world as they do. "Think like the horse," my dad would say. "Guide her like you are another horse and not like you are her master." He was recommending a partnership over a dictatorship.

Look for ways to introduce a spirit of fun and whimsy. I shopped at a retail store that had a sign on the back wall that read: "Unaccompanied children will be given an expresso and a free puppy." It humorously communicated the rein-in requirement that parents keep their children under control. A sign near the entrance to a hospital conference room read: "Absolutely no food, drink or ballpoint pens."

The Palomar Hotel in Philadelphia provides an umbrella hanging in the guest room closet. The tag on the umbrella has a poem that reads: "Rain, rain, go away. Feel free to use me during your stay. Take me home and you will pay, $45 on your bill today!" By transforming a rule into a rhyme, they turned harsh into happy.

Change the frame of traditional boundaries. I was working at the Grand Hyatt in Maui. There was a section off the lobby cordoned off with Hawaiian leis connected together to provide a beautiful barricade. When I asked the banquet manager about the unique barrier marker he told me, "We used to use those velvet ropes with hooks like you might see in a theater lobby. But, guests would unhook them from their brass stands and completely ignore them. When we changed them to a string of leis, no one removed or crossed them." They stayed on the sidewalk, so to speak, instead of taking a short cut through the flower garden.

Let the rule tell its own story or to a new audience. Near the Staten Island ferry in New York City there is a no smoking area with a sign that lets the cigarette communicate with the smoker: "Save a cigarette. Every day, thousands of cigarettes die from burns inflicted by preventable fires.Help save a cigarette today. Please respect our no smoking policy." A city park, concerned with unpleasant dog poop elected to speak to the dog as well as the dog's owner. "Attention dog owners, please pick up after you dog, thank you. Attention dogs, Grrr, ruff, ruff, woof, good dog!"

Exaggerate the request in an obviously comical way. I was coaching a senior leader who had an abusive style of leadership that provoked fear among his direct reports. He wanted to learn to moderate his knee jerk temper and gave me permission to work with his associates. The remedy? Any time he raised his voice, the person to whom he was directing his rancor was instructed to grab his own chest and fall out of the chair as if he or she had been shot. It worked! The comical exaggeration was as effective as a school zone sign painted on the street with the word "school" misspelled or a "speed limit 23” sign.

Every retail organization wants a positive relationship with customers. They also have rules, boundaries, and restrictions customers might not always enjoy or prefer. While no one wants an inane regulation or a stupid rule, boundaries are necessary. Look for ways to sprinkle a sense of delight on the "no" experience by reinventing how you communicate it.

Chip R. Bell is the author of several award-winning, best-selling books. His newest is "Kaleidoscope: Delivering Innovative Service That Sparkles."