Still I approached the prospect of lecturing about customer focus and experience to a group of people that are not traditionally customer facing with trepidation.

Until I had my own supply chain customer experience and realised the HUGE impact it can have. Let’s look at the steps.

1.        Late December 2009 I bought a 27 inch IMac from a reputable department store (not an Apple store).  We were told we could expect delivery in 2 weeks.

2.       In the 3rd week we were told there was a delay and it would take another 2 weeks.

3.       2 weeks passed and we were now told that they could not tell us when we could expect delivery but it could be 4-6 weeks.  At this point the Apple shop was promising delivery in 2 weeks.

4.       We rang the Apple shop and they assured us that they could deliver in 2 weeks.  We then asked them if they could tell us the status of our order made via the department store. They said sorry, that was another system and they did not have access.

5.       We went back to the department store and quizzed them on why the Apple store can deliver in 2 weeks while they cannot even tell us when they can deliver?

6.       As a result of this whole process we quickly went from being a promoter of Apple to a Detractor and vented by posting another blog about our experience.

Throughout the process the Department store was extremely helpful and we understood they were caught up in a Supply Chain nightmare. Now the Apple iMac has arrived and is beautiful. Recently we also bought an iPad. But for a while there we hated Apple.

It is clear that organisations now compete on the responsiveness, product availability and prowess of their delivery speed.  The supply chain has a huge impact on the demand chain.

Now I can present at the Supply Chain course and know personally how critical it is to have a strong customer focus when designing and managing your supply chain. To ignore the impact of the supply chain on the customer can be disastrous and has certainly earned its place in a comprehensive supply management course.

The video is a snap shot of my small contribution to this excellent course.

Supply Chain Video

How to register

Register online or download the Registration Form from the UQBS Corporate Education website: www.business.uq.edu.au/corporate-education

For further information contact UQBS Corporate Education, telephone -  (07) 3346 7111 or email - corped@business.uq.edu.au

A great welcome

It started with us arriving at reception to receive a traditional Indian welcome. This is where a hostess put the red colour dot on our foreheads and greeted us with the traditional ‘namaste’. Orange County is set amongst coffee plantations with cobblestone paths winding through the beautiful resort. Our rooms were spacious and comfortable and our stay at Orange County was very rejuvenating.

Exceptional food and amazing variety

The food was absolutely exquisite. Orange County provide a buffet style breakfast, lunch and dinner. At every meal there were 25 to 30 different dishes. Around 7 to 8 of the most popular dishes stayed constant but the others changed at EVERY meal.

Staff that truly care

However, the most memorable thing about Orange County is their staff. Wherever we walked around Orange County all staff would make it a point to greet us whether they were security guards, gardeners or staff at reception. The activity co-ordinator would enthusiastically and passionately promote each night’s cultural event. The waiters were not only polite and prompt but very attentive. As a guest such behaviour made you feel as though your patronage was highly valued and that staff were committed to making the Orange County experience one you would never forget. In short you felt ‘spoilt’.

A sacred duty of care

A perfect example of this was the Ayurvedic massage offered at Orange County. Before the massage starts you’re introduced to the 2 masseurs who explain the process and benefits and then do something quite amazing - they inform you that will say a prayer before they start your massage. The prayer and the accompanying music creates an amazing ambience.

The fact that they pray before the massage makes you feel that they are not just ’doing a job’ but that they have a ‘sacred duty of care’. This and the fact that they are personally committed to make the experience great by making sure you feel completely at ease creates an experience at a whole different level.

The 2 masseurs massage you at the same time and are in perfect harmony with one another. The quality of the massage is amazing and you walk away feeling amazingly relaxed and truly spoilt.

Looking back at my Orange County experience I have to say it was very memorable experience and I have since recommended it to several friends and family members. I also present this story when I conduct presentations at various marketing and management forums and seminars.

So what’s the key to their success???

The key is that they measure everything. They do this with a short customer survey of 5-7 questions. By everything I mean - every meal, massage, health spa experience, resort activity and finally when you leave. Filling the survey after every meal and after every activity might sound irritating but soon it becomes the norm. It is also becomes very easy to do as every aspect of the experience is great. By measuring every experience Orange County can not only gain insight on how to improve their experience but they can also ensure consistency throughout the whole Orange County experience.

Experiences that drive growth

The Orange County experience really is a perfect example of how listening to customers and taking action at an operational and granular level can create experiences which exceed expectations and are truly memorable. It is experiences like this which customers cannot stop recommending and businesses like these are the ones who break through the clutter in the marketplace to attract AND retain customers who actively recommend you to others. This is what is required to thrive in tough times.

Their Net Promoter Score would be absolutely HUGE!

I bet if Orange County conducted a Net Promoter Score survey they would achieve an extremely high score. This is not surprising as this is exactly how a Net Promoter Score operational survey works. NPS operational surveys are conducted at a granular level and track each key customer interaction so that the insight gained can be fed back to the right operational area for action and improvement. NPS loyalty leaders also have engaged staff.

Back to adequate service.

After my Orange County experience I then came back to Australia and went to one of the top Casino’s and experienced service that was best described as ‘transactional and bland’ and definitely not worthy of recommendation. So here you have two luxury hotel experiences. The Orange County experience drives growth via repurchase and positive word of mouth. The Casino experience was only transactional and therefore only an operational cost. Of course we have not even factored in the detrimental economic impact of negative word of mouth.

So here are a few key questions.

Are your customer experiences worthy of recommendation? OR are they just adequate and transactional?

Are your customer experiences generating incremental growth via increased loyalty and recommendation? OR are they merely an operational cost?

Are your staff truly engaged and personally committed to creating experiences worthy of recommendation? Or are they just doing a job?

Here is a link to the Orange County Website

The response to the current economic crisis in Australia is a bit bipolar. On the one hand:

·         A fast food chain had a value meal with a burger, fries, drink AND an ice cream sundae for just $4.99 which is very unusual.

·         The local coffee shop offered me a free cake with my coffee.

·         A HR recruitment agent emailed me and thanked me for referring a candidate to her even though my candidate did not get the job. This is a 1^st for me as I constantly get calls from HR recruitment agents asking if I know candidates but never a thank you post event.

On the other hand a more traditional response:

·         I heard a legal firm in the city offered their lawyers a 12 month sabbatical at 25% of their current salary

·         A leading construction firm got rid of 150 out of 200 office staff

·         Pacific brands, an iconic Australian business, moved their manufacturing overseas

·         More jobs are moving to India   

Strangely it’s either a feast or a famine. So to survive businesses are either cutting costs or increasing customer focus.

At such a time it’s easy for businesses to consider the short term and lose sight of the long term impact. Cutting costs and shedding staff can result in disenfranchising customers and staff over the long term. Both stakeholders will remember how they were treated during tough times.

Once this recession ends it will be costly to recruit and train new staff and difficult to win back lost customers. Customer relationships are just like personal relationships you remember which friends supported you in tough times.

On top of this we are taught that increasing customer focus costs money.

So businesses are stuck between a rock and a hard place. So what do you do to survive in this financial crisis?  Cut costs or increase your customer focus?

But what if you could do both? That is, increase customer focus and cut costs.  

It seems impossible but studies by Bain & Co and Satmetrix show that NPS® loyalty leaders (brands with the highest Net Promoter Score in a category) typically grow at approximately 2 times the category average and ALSO enjoy lower operational costs.

Net Promoter Score® measures the likelihood that your customers will recommend you to others. It was co-developed by Satmetrix and loyalty expert Fred Reichheld of Bain & Company and starts by asking the most important question you could ask your customers which is “How likely are you to recommend us to a friend or colleague?” on a scale of 0 – 10 followed by the reason for the score. 

A score of 9 or 10 is classified as a Promoter, 7-8 is a Passive and a 0-6 is a Detractor.  The Net promoter score is the percentage of Promoters less Detractors.

So let’s look at why these organisations grow AND have lower costs.

Growth is simple. A high NPS score means customers are more loyal, more likely to buy other product lines and recommend you to their friends and family creating a new and highly trusted sales channel.

But what about lower costs? How does that work?

Again it’s quite simple, think about what happens when an organisation is focussed on increasing promoters and reducing detractors. Detractors are those customers who typically spread negative word of mouth about a business. However, they strongly believe they have a valid reason to do so.

In best practice Net Promoter Score® implementations organisations listen very carefully to detractors and take strategic and systematic action based on their comments.

Naturally the end result is that the organisation improves and streamlines their systems, processes, products and channels making the organisation more effective and efficient.

Additionally, those customers who are promoters for your brand become a trusted sales channel, which means that loyalty leaders can easily afford to spend less on advertising and other customer acquisition costs again saving costs.

In fact, if you flip it around the additional cost that organisation’s spend on advertising can be interpreted as a tax as a result of the organisation providing bland or even unsatisfactory customer experiences. Why? Well such organisations rely more heavily on advertising to attract new customers as their existing customers may not buy from them again, let alone recommend them to others.

So if you are truly looking for a long term strategy that may put you ahead of the pack in terms of growth now and in the future AND potentially also help you reduce costs then NPS may be the answer.

Net Promoter and NPS Net Promoter Score are registered trademarks of Satmetrix Systems Inc., Bain & Company and Fred Reichheld.

So we made a booking and rocked up.  We drove past the street location several times but we could not find it – you see there was no sign outside saying ‘Garuva’.  Finally we parked and found the entrance by foot. There was absolutely no sign or even a hint that this was our restaurant. Eventually we found the entrance a darkish corridor with a small fountain on the left hand side. 

The hostess greeted us and led us to our table. That is if you can call it a table. The words from the Garuva web site describe it best. “Patrons sit on cushioned rugs on the floor with supported back rests, low tables and very dim lighting.  All the tables (or booths) are enclosed by sheer curtains. The atmosphere is very private and especially intimate for couples.”

It has the ambience of an up market ‘Hippie bar’ in Goa, India. I mean that in the nicest possible way. Very Cool!!!

A bit more about the ambience, the music was cool and the sheets surrounding you give you a sense of privacy but you can still see patrons at neighbouring tables.

The service was unique as it felt like you were being served by someone like you, a peer. Almost as if you were a guest at a friend’s house. You were not served by someone who is too young or someone who is just doing a job. Not subservient and fawning and definitely not snobbish.

The staff reminded me of the people who work for Nordstrom the famous department store renowned for its service. They were like owners not employees.

What was the food like? A unique blend of eastern, exotic and modern cuisine.

Typically Garuva is always full. As described on the web site limitations apply on Friday and Saturday nights “ During the week Sunday to Thursday there is no time restriction, but Friday and Saturday nights when the restaurant is fully booked for 2 sittings, the first sitting is for 2 hours only”

Now here is the twist Garuva does not advertise, in fact it has never advertised since 1992.

It relies purely on word of mouth  

So what drives word of mouth?

It’s the BUZZ factor.  Conversation about Garuva would go along these lines “You know we went to this restaurant that had no sign outside, we had to sit on the ground, in our own cubicle, surrounded by sheets, the food was …..”

What are the lessons for other organisations

o   Everything has to be great if you rely on word of mouth - If any aspect is not up to the mark such as the food, service chances of such strong BUZZ or word of mouth would not have been possible. 

o   In this case the conversation would have gone like this “Garuva is interesting BUT …..” as soon as you have a BUT you either get no word of mouth or with a caveat which is actually negative word of mouth.

So the lesson for organisations is to create a unique value proposition and deliver an end-to-end super customer experience with engaged staff.

Check out their web site http://www.garuva.com.au/