Positively Outrageous Service

Positively Outrageous Service – Principle #3 Photo by Johann Walter Bantz on Unsplash “Unless you love everybody, you can’t sell anybody.” – Dicky Fox (Jerry Maguire) The third fundamental principle of Positively Outrageous Service: Create engagement by either getting the customer to play or get them involved in other ways. A service experience that is fun makes it highly memorable and lends itself to positive word-of-mouth. Your customer can't help themselves but to tell others! For more on this listen to our 15 minute radio segment: OUTRAGEOUS!!! Creating Extraordinary Experiences with Positively Outrageous Service® – available also through Spotify, Google Podcasts, AnchorFM and iTunes.

Positively Outrageous Service - Principle #2 Photo: Bob Smith - "I'm in the service business. I mean, our sandwiches are pretty good; I don't know if they're extraordinary. But our service is." "Jimmy John" Liautaud The second key principle of Positively Outrageous Service is creating a service experience that is "out of proportion to the circumstances." It heightens the intensity, engagement and memorability of customer service, or in reality, any relational engagement! For more listen to our 15 minute radio segment Outrageous!!! - available also on Spotify, Google Podcasts, AnchorFM and ITunes.

Be The Revolution of Excellence in Customer Experience with Positively Outrageous Service! You can only be the revolution. It is in your spirit, or it is nowhere.” ― Ursula K. Le Guin, The Dispossessed A few years ago, I met some extraordinary Virgins! I was due to fly to a Healthcare Technology conference in Las Vegas from Dallas Love Field by the erstwhile Virgin America airline. There were two clients at this conference and had a program for one of them which included a video. The video was late in getting to me. But I had everything lined up. My Uber was waiting, I didn’t have bags to check and I was TSA pre-checked. I had this! As we turn off the main road into the airport approach road my mobile phone rings. It’s not a number I recognize. Like most of us I depress the red button to hang up. The Uber pulls up to the curbside, the same number rings. Hit the red button again. Running through the terminal into TSA pre-check, put my bag on the conveyor belt, phone rings again, same number, somebody is really trying to get a hold of me specifically! I answer the phone. “This is Brian with Virgin, we are about to close the gate!” “I’m here!” I emphatically respond. TSA man sternly motions me to hang up and get through the metal detector! I’m compliant. Yes, that day, I was THAT passenger. You know the one! “Mr. Szabo please come to Gate 11. This is the final call for boarding!” I run through the terminal. I glance at the departure board. It’s 11:05 am and … the 10:20 am Virgin flight to Las Vegas is not listed. “What!” There’s a Southwest 10:15 am flight listed to New Orleans. How could this be? Out of breath, heart racing, I get to Gate 11. It’s empty. No passengers. No Virgin employees. No one behind the counter! The door to the jetway is closed. Foolishly, I look down at the plane, how can this be? It’s only 10:07 am. I am startled by the gate door opening. A tall man in a Virgin uniform comes through. I plead with him to let me on the plane. “I have a client on the plane, I really need to get on … is there any way? Please!” “Is your name Andrew?” “Yes.” “Oh, I’m Brian … I was the one you hang up on earlier!” Ouch! I cringe. Any possibility of me boarding vanishes in my mind. It’s the end of the road! Brian turns around and returns down the jetway closing the door. Defeated, I slump into a chair at the empty gate and turn on my mobile to figure out when is the next flight to Las Vegas and how to make the change. A few minutes later the jetway gate door opens. I glance up to see it’s Brian. Not expecting anything I am startled as he opens the door wide and motions me to come and go down the jetway. “Please board the plane Mr. Szabo!” I am flabbergasted. My jaw must have dropped to the carpet! “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!” I almost wanted to hug him. But thought better not push my luck! This is Positively Outrageous! I’m sure he and / or the flight captain broke a rule to let me on. Have you ever heard of anyone letting you on a plane after the gate has been closed? Never! This is Positively Outrageous Service! Positively Outrageous Service is that WOW experience you can't wait to tell another about!   My heart racing, briskly I make my way down the empty jetway to the plane fully expecting a shaming, perhaps some scowls or grimaces from the flight crew. I enter the plane and there are three Virgin flight attendants finalizing details. They turn to me with huge smiles, and greet me with total enthusiasm. “Mr. Szabo we are so glad you made the flight today!” “We are delighted to have you on board!” A feather would have knocked me over! More Positively Outrageous Service! And by the way the flight still left on time! Strong choices by great Virgins. Brian went over the top. He made a choice to see if it was possible to get me on the plane. The flight attendants made an intentional choice to welcome me and make me feel good.

https://youtu.be/tPAFN7MnOBs Thank you. Thank you! Thank you!!! Thank you… I so appreciate you! We like to be thanked, don’t we? But there’s a big difference in being thanked through a text or an email or a simple handwritten thank you card? When was the last time you received a handwritten thank you card? How did that make you feel? Probably valued, precious … that person took the time to hand write a thank you card to appreciate you. Photo by Hanny Naibaho on Unsplash When was the last time you did that for someone else? It makes a big difference in someone’s life. Any yet … what’s the investment? We’re talking two to three minutes perhaps to write those two, three sentences, address it, put a simple postage stamp on it and of it goes – something that’s Positively Outrageous. Why is it Positively Outrageous? Because so few people do it and yet it’s so simple. Some of the things we do to deliver Positively Outrageous Service are not complicated – they are very simple. As simple thank you card sends a big message. All it takes is a little thought, a little effort, a little time. Thank you. Thank you! Thank you!!! Thank you… we so appreciate you! It is through gratitude for the present moment that the spiritual dimension of life opens up. Eckhart Tolle Want to create greater Positively Outrageous Service engagement for your teams? Check out POS LITE our acclaimed program to generate POS ideas and ownership at https://positivelyoutrageousservice.com/lite/

“Little details are vital. Little things make a big things happen” - John Wooden. Are you capturing and leveraging these details to elevate the relationship and create Positively Outrageous Service moments?

Do you have a program for customer care or do you care for your customers? There’s a difference! Do you care or are you caring? – Positively Outrageous Service is the Distinction!   https://youtu.be/jxalsacHuLE Click here to watch the video - or just read on! It really came to me during a hospital visit. For the first time in my life I was admitted to hospital for an illness – not something self-inflicted like a bike crash. It was a fascinating experience. I got there through a misfortune … I had an infection that was not properly diagnosed and was given ineffective medication. After four days of fever and no improvement I was admitted to hospital. In the first three hours I interacted with over fifteen hospital personnel through admission, the battery of testing … blood and other lab work, x-rays, EKG, the admitting doctor, my attending nurse and several others whose role I was clueless to. Over the 22 hours I was in the hospital that number of personnel I encountered surpassed fifty … I lost count but it included five doctors, seven nurses and innumerable others. Some staff were good, a minority mediocre, and a few were exceptional … delivering Positively Outrageous Service!!! A hospital is primarily about patient care: diagnosing and prescribing a course of treatment to improve patient health, which requires knowledgeable and skillful personnel. But caring for a patient requires something additional: a way of thinking of compassion, sensitivity and caring. Everyone was focused on patient care - they were competent, but those that cared about me gave me the gift of peace of mind in my hours of uncertainty, levity to my concerns, comfort through clear communication and made it fun giving me the gift of joy in a distressing situation. Patient care versus caring for a patient. Many organizations have a customer care program that is technically competent and very process-oriented, which is good. But good is the enemy of the best. Organizations that care for their customers through Positively Outrageous Service create a lasting impression that results in loyalty, advocacy and competitive differentiation. What’s your culture? Customer care or caring for your customer, client, patron, passenger or patient?Positively Outrageous Service is the distinguishing characteristic. The Diagnosis for Caring for your Customer ... Love your customer!!! Contact us today if you have an event, conference or need to implement Positively Outrageous Service into your organization.

Positively Outrageous Service is Infectious https://youtu.be/8ZdOVzfNLu4 My brother and I are out on a bike ride. We stop at a red light. It’s a major intersection, multiple lanes, cars coming from all directions and it’s rush hour. As we wait for the light to change, a DHL delivery truck to our left got the green light and turns left in front of us. As the truck turns, making the corner, the side door is clearly unlatched and flies open. With the inertia of the turn, boxes come spewing out. It was like a box Gatling gun. At least two to three dozen boxes and packages spill all over the intersection. It was shocking. There’s a collective gasp from all the cars, which is pretty surprising since their windows are rolled up! Like everyone else, my brother and I are simply stunned as we watch this event unfold before us, almost in slow-motion. Simultaneously, we threw down our bikes and run out into the middle of the intersection to stop cars just in case they didn't see what happened. Meanwhile, the DHL truck pulls over. He’s face is ashen white, alarm and panicoverwhelm his body. My brother and I gather the boxes as fast as we possibly can. Then, another person jumps out of the car to help, and then another. Four of us grab boxes as fast as we can from the road. Then a red truck pulls into the intersection and the driver yells out, “put them in the back of the truck.” So, now the team of fearless five are picking up boxes scattered throughout the intersection, putting them into the back of this benevolent guy's truck. We clear out the intersection and pull the truck over to where the shocked DHL driver is waiting. We start to transfer the boxes back into the DHL truck. As traffic flow resumes, the people that drive by are honking, waving, high fiving and hollering, “good job guys!” The DHL driver couldn’t have been more appreciative as he loaded up the packages and boxes and eventually went on his way. We high five each other and get back in our cars … actually my brother and I mount our bikes and return home. Why this story? Positively Outrageous Service is infectious. When we saw the incident unfold, my brother and I, and others, jumped in … we went out of our way to say and show: “how can we help?” So keep your eyes open, open to opportunities where you can jump in and be above and beyond the call of duty. Also, it gives an excuse, actually permission for others to also step up, to play and pitch in … help out in any type of situation that's unfolding. And you can bet the DHL driver now had a spring his step, a smile on his face and was distributing more than packages for the rest of the day. He was undoubtedly delivering an experience of Positively Outrageous Service! Having a heart for others, eyes open to opportunities and being spontaneous is not only infectious in its impact in the service of everyone around us, it’s Positively Outrageous. Ready to upgrade your service? Consult us today for speaking, training and culture development services.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTC4rh5tN9Y Theatre owners actually have a name for it. It’s called “blow-by.” Believe it or not there are human beings capable of ignoring the compelling smell of, you guessed it, popcorn. What once was a tiny seed of hybrid corn eventually winds up with the power to bring this full-size man to a dead stop and drag me by the nostrils with the promise of an unexpected sample of what is little more than salt and hot air. Customers who stray too close will find themselves captured by the almost-burned taste of exploded kernels and the sometimes added treat of butter flavoured oil. No point in asking, popcorn isn’t what you would call health food. I’ve been a lifelong lover of popcorn no matter where it comes from whether it comes from oily steel pot of a theatre popper or the electronic guts of a microwave oven I love the taste, smell, and crunch of fresh popped popcorn.  I like theatre popcorn, gas station popcorn. I even like fresh from the bank lobby popcorn. Yes, my bank pops popcorn just for me. When I walk through the doors of my bank the smell of popcorn dominates the experience. It just hits me like I have walked into a brick wall. And suddenly… I’m happy. I couldn’t tell you what the going rate for a CD is. I have no idea what or even if there is interest paid on a savings accounts. But I can tell you it’s the popcorn I've come to expect. I really have, it’s just something that they do that I appreciate because it makes the day seem a little bit special. I look forward to seeing Tiffany who is in the back who I actually love dealing with. Just the other day she said “Mr Hoffman we have something special for you today.” With that she pulled out a box of popcorn that looks like it just came from the movie theatre. They know I am addicted to their popcorn! Not only do I do my banking there, but I have my business there, all of my family is there and I bring people there. Why? It's not the popcorn; it's the fact that they go out of their way to know who I am and to take advantage of those little opportunities. I’ve come to expect popcorn all the time, but what I don't expect from every bank is for them to know me, let me know that they know me and do those extra things like popping corn just for me. My bank and the people who work there are positively outrageous. Is there somebody today, somebody this week that you can go out of your way…just a little bit to let them know you know them? If you did that would be Positively Outrageous Service!  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ab8dziDZnNo Guess what I found? It’s an old fashioned box camera. I also bought a new camera and the specs on it are absolutely killer. Which of the two cameras do you think take the best picture? Which of the two cameras take the best photograph? All right that was unfair. Me asking you this way is really is a trick question because a picture and a photograph are two entirely different things. A picture is a record of what actually happened.  But a photograph is a record of how you felt about it. With most cameras you take a picture just by pushing a button.  But a photograph takes some thought.  It takes composition. A picture comes from in front of the lens.  While a photograph comes from behind the lens. Similarly, it's like the difference between customer service and hospitality.  Anyone can follow the rules, manage by the numbers and give acceptable customer service.  But hospitality is an experience, it's what we call positively outrageous service, it comes straight from the heart. When I planned to buy a new digital camera I called around and found three stores that had the camera I wanted in stock. Funny thing is, they all sold it for exactly the same price.  I asked the people at the store with friendliest sounding clerks to hold a camera for me and that I would be there in about 15 minutes. When I arrived, a young woman was waiting for me.  In addition to my camera she was holding a memory card.  She explained that the camera did not come with one but that she had one that was on sale.  That’s exceptional customer service.  That’s positively outrageous service.  That’s the kind of service that will bring me back to the store even if the price turns out to be a little bit higher. How are you creating hospitality from the heart? An exceptional customer experience that's positively outrageous!  Would you like a complimentary POS Assessment? Contact us at 803.792.5555!

https://youtu.be/Y2EBsfkO3Ic It was his birthday. Michael Hoffman was on the road, again, alone, as usual. Michael had walked into yet another chain hotel and once again in spite of all the promises made by a marketing budget in the millions they still hadn’t figured how to get a guest room ready on time. But at least they had managed to be friendly when they suggested that that he might enjoy waiting for the next 90 minutes in the lobby. Sure. At first glance the small gift shop snugged against a corridor wall didn’t show any more signs of life than did the lobby.  But with 89 minutes to go it might be good for killing at least a small part of a long afternoon. Michael browsed his way into the shop and knew in an instant that at best he was about to see a selection of “the usual” hotel gift shop inventory: antacids, Tylenol, novels, you know, no surprises. From behind the counter a young lady stood watching as Michael scooped up an over-priced bottle of spring water before sauntering to the cash register. No doubt the fact that Michael was not having a day befitting a birthday must have been written on his face. “Hello,” smiled the diminutive woman. “Can I buy you a drink?” (How’s that for an interesting approach?) “What brings you to our part of the world?” She continued. Finally, Michael took the bait and replied. “I can’t check in. They’re making me wait. It’s my birthday, I’m grouchy. I want to go home.” She said oh I’m sorry that’s not the experience we’re trying to create, but I’m glad you are here and by the way happy birthday. Let me buy you a drink! And with that she slid the bottle back across the counter. “Happy birthday! On behalf of the hotel, all of us we’re sorry you have to wait.  It does happen once in a while, but we would love to buy you a little birthday gift.” Says Michael, “I stayed for another 15 minutes. We chatted and I had a great time. And I have to tell you that little gesture, that little fun encounter, that little out of the way outrageousness made my day!” She took a moment that could be negative and turned it into a moment that I keep talking about. And that’s Positively Outrageous Service!  Would you like a complimentary POS Assessment? Contact us at 803.792.5555!