One drawback to living in a relatively new neighborhood is that the landscaping is not yet fully established. This means small trees with few leaves. I suppose if you can’t stand raking leaves, small trees would be a plus. For me, however, with four young children who love to play in a big pile of leaves, it’s a drawback.

One year, a friend of mine from a well-established neighborhood with plenty of mature trees allowed me to pick up his lawn and leaf bags, bursting with leaves, and transport them back to my own yard. Another year, I helped myself to leaves at a well-landscaped industrial park over the weekend when no one was around to question my activity. I even received a large box of leaves in the mail one year from my brother-in-law in Sioux Falls.

Why go to this extent? Because I love my children and want to do whatever I can to create memorable childhood experiences for them. Most of us have had a running start at a huge pile of leaves earlier in life. I want my children to be able to experience it too.

It’s the same with serving customers. If your goal is to create memorable experiences for your customers, then it may require similar creativity and improvising.

Here are a few examples:

• I have a favorite pasta dish that doesn’t appear on the menus of most Italian restaurants. While these menus tend to offer broccoli and sautéed mushrooms as side dishes and Fettuccini Alfredo and Chicken Marsala as entrees, my favorite pasta dish is Fettuccini Alfredo topped with pieces of chicken, broccoli, and mushrooms. The best restaurants, having ready access to the ingredients, will improvise and create for me a customized entrée and a memorable dining experience.
• For my 40^th birthday, I spent the weekend at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas with family and friends. My father-in-law ordered Coca-Cola from our poolside server, Betty. Though only Pepsi products were readily available, Betty improvised and located a “secret stash” in order to fulfill the request. Did she make an impression? That was more than three years ago and I still remember her name!
• Once, at my local Safeway, I was looking for a package of prepared seasoning for meatballs. An employee named Kristi encountered me looking puzzled in the spice aisle and asked if she could assist me. I explained what I was looking for and together we searched the shelves for the product—to no avail. Instead of saying, “Sorry, it doesn’t look like we carry that,” Kristi took the time to share the ingredients and quantities used in her own family recipe. Her willingness to improvise not only created a memorable shopping experience for me, it caused me to spend money on ingredients as opposed to leaving the store empty-handed.

Is your goal to create memorable experiences for your customers? If so, then even though you may not have a specific menu item, a readily available can of Coke, or a package of prepared meatball seasoning, you have your imagination and the ability to improvise.

And that may be all you need to create memorable experiences for your customers. Well, that and a pile of leaves.

Earlier this evening, between dinner and dessert, my two-year-old son began singing the ABCs Song from his high chair. Not once, but again and again as he was cheered on by his siblings and me each time after completing the song’s finale: “…Next time won’t you sing with meeeee?”

His face lit up every time he was acknowledged at the end of his song. And then, as if it was the very first time, he launched into another rendition of the ABC Song. And what did we, his audience, do throughout each new performance? We smiled, nodded, encouraged, and clapped as though it were the very first time we had heard Carter sing the song.

It reminded me of when customers ask us questions we’ve heard a hundred (or thousand) times before. Common questions such as, “Where are you located?” or “How does your rewards program work?” or “What beers do you have on tap?”

The tendency is to begin answering the question even before the customer has completed his sentence. Sometimes the response is rushed in order to move onto other, more important, questions or priorities or is delivered in a way that is robotic. Efficient, yes, but ineffective.

Customers deserve to be acknowledged in unique ways. It may be the fortieth time you’ve heard the question today but it’s likely the first time this customer has asked it. Respond to their questions in ways that communicate a sincere desire to serve.

And here’s another benefit to tuning into customer questions—even the common ones: a chance to sell!

Take the three common questions above for example. Each question provides an opportunity to make a sale. When a customer calls and asks where you’re located, you have a chance to make a friendly first impression over the phone and to facilitate the customer’s drive to your location by providing clear directions with easy-to-spot landmarks.

Seriously, think of all the times that you’ve contacted a business for directions and because of the robotic, apathetic, or indifferent response, you made a decision to go elsewhere. It happens—a lot.

When a customer asks how a rewards program works, that’s your opportunity to shine, learn more about the customer’s use of your products and services, and enroll her in the program. She benefits from the program’s perks and your company benefits from her continued loyalty and future spending.

The alternative is to default to a script that you’ve spewed countless times in the past as you hand the program brochure to the customer before moving on to other priorities. The recipients of these rote pitches generally toss the program materials as soon as they round the next corner.

And the final example above, “What beers do you have on tap?” provides a great opportunity for engaged servers to sell high-margin draft beer or to upsell customers to a larger size—and a higher profit margin.

How many times have you heard a server respond in one breath, “BudBudLightCoorsCoorsLightAnchorSteamAmstelLightSamAdams andBass” or, worse, point you to the back of the menu? I recall times when servers were visibly irritated by the question. Their body language said, “Ugh…not again.”

Years ago I read the book, Hey, I’m the Customer: Front Line Tips for Providing Superior Customer Service by Ron Willingham. One of the quotes from that book that stood out to me was to “tune the world out and the customer in.” Whether “the world” refers to being preoccupied, distractions, or even the monotony of answering the same question again and again, you owe it to your customers to tune them in.

Think back to the beginning of this post. Imagine if, instead of acknowledging my two-year-old son with applause, I had said, “Yeah, yeah, yeah…ABCs. Look Carter, you’re my fourth kid. Do you know how many times I’ve heard the ABC Song? Here, eat your ice cream.” Efficient, yes, but ineffective.

So the next time you receive “that question” (you know the one), refuse to go on autopilot. Instead, pause, make eye contact, smile, and then, with a bit of enthusiasm in your voice, respond as though it’s the very first time you’ve heard the question. Look for opportunities—even in seemingly predictable questions—to learn more about your customers, to add value, and to increase sales.

In an earlier post I asked the question, “Why is it okay to behave indifferently toward customers and roll out the red carpet for the division president?” Specifically, why do employees paint, wax the floors, and polish the chrome for the division president and text friends, smoke near store entrances, and complain and banter in the presence of customers?

I have a theory about this. Here it is: Familiarity breeds contempt. Most employees rarely come into contact with and, thus, aren’t familiar with the division president. Oh sure, they may know his or her name but they’re usually not familiar to the point of lowering their guard in the executive’s presence.

Not so with customers. Customer-facing employees come into contact with customers all the time. And whether or not there is personal familiarity with a particular customer, there is a sense of familiarity with customers in general. And where there’s excessive comfort and familiarity, there’s contempt—a lack of respect—and a tendency to take the relationship for granted.

It’s not that employees don’t know what service is or how to deliver it. They do. And they showcase this aptitude in the presence of the division president. The issue is that many seem disaffected by customers—as in, “Oh, you’re just a customer. For a minute there I thought you were someone important, like the division president.”

In the introductory paragraph of this post, I listed three behaviors that I regularly observe in retail settings. These behaviors are chronic. They occur frequently. The only time they are exceptions is when the division president is on-site.

When executives grace the operation with their presence, the floors are spotless, there are plenty of employees scheduled, employees’ uniforms are pressed, there are lots of smiles, and there is a sense of urgency—dare I say, a bit of giddiness and extra pressure to perform?

The best operations don’t distinguish between a scheduled site visit by a division president and the scheduled opening of the store to service customers. Sure, there may be a bit of anxiety associated with the presence of a company executive—that’s natural—but the company’s standards don’t wane in the absence of headquarters staff.

Nordstrom comes to mind as an example of a retailer who puts its best foot forward whether a customer or Blake Nordstrom is entering the shoe department. The last time I was in Nordstrom, an employee from the men’s department walked me to the women’s department in search of an umbrella. When we returned to the men’s department, I decided to buy a bottle of cologne too. It was an impulse buy—in the moment. I didn’t plan to buy it and, in the absence of his outstanding service, I would not have.

Here’s an assignment for division presidents everywhere: If you really want to see how your operations run, stop by unannounced in a ball cap and jeans over the weekend. Don’t embarrass anyone. Just observe and take mental notes about what you see—the positive as well as need areas.

Then, assuming there was a gap (or chasm) between what you observed during your last official visit and this one, take action. Establish or reinforce credible standards to guide employees’ behavior. Make sure that every manager is aware of the standards and actively uses them to manage their employees’ performance. And, perhaps most importantly, hold managers accountable to model these standards at all times. If they don’t, the standards are no longer credible and become unenforceable.

Bob Farrell, author of Give ‘em the Pickle, is fond of saying, “What they see is what you’ll get.” When employees see their managers modeling established standards of service and procedure, they will perform similarly. When this happens, employees will stop texting friends, smoking near store entrances, and complaining and bantering in the presence of customers. And they will no longer seem disaffected by customers. Instead, they will treat them with the same courtesy, respect, and care with which they treat the division president.

Who’s more important: the division president or the customer? You decide and then your employees will follow suit.

Companies that make me laugh create positive memories for me—of the service experience and brand. Using appropriate humor is an authentic way for companies to express their uniqueness while making it memorable for customers.

Here’s an example from Chipotle Mexican Grill:

Employees at Chipotle place to-go orders in brown bags with handles. Handles are unique—you don’t see that at most quick service restaurants—but what’s truly memorable to me is the message printed on the bottom of its bags:

Don’t throw this bag away!

Try these other uses:

• Cat carrier
• Put handles over ears…hands-free burrito eating
• 401(k) statements filing receptacle
• NOT recommended as a parachute

Besides reinforcing the importance of recycling, Chipotle uses appropriate humor to extend the service experience from the restaurant to the customer’s home or office.

Compare Chipotle’s to-go bag with one from a typical quick service restaurant. What’s different about it? Chipotle’s bag is so unique to me that I devoted a blog entry to it. In an environment where so many products and services are seen as bland, ordinary, and routine, Chipotle’s to-go bag makes an impression!

Look around your own business. What are some ways that you can transform products and services that are ordinary into something unique and refreshing—using appropriate humor, design, or some other attribute?

It’s Customer Service Week. I suppose I’m obligated to mention it since I work in the field. It’s just difficult for me to get behind an event staged with banners, buttons, and other chotchkies lauding the importance of customers and customer service when the reality is that many customers at participating companies will remain underserved this week, as they were last week, and as they will be next week.

Besides, shouldn’t every week be customer service week?

Let me begin with a fairy tale. It’s about an emperor who unwittingly hires two swindlers to create for him a new set of clothes. Perhaps you’ve heard of it? The swindlers promise the emperor the finest suit of clothes from the most beautiful cloth. This cloth, they tell him, is invisible to anyone who was either stupid or unfit for his lofty position. Although the emperor cannot see the (non-existent) cloth, he pretends that he can for fear of appearing stupid. His advisors do the same.

During the course of the emperor’s procession through town, the swindle is exposed (no pun intended) by a small child who shouts, “The Emperor is naked!”

What does this have to do with customer service? I’m using it as a metaphor for the majority of people (employees, as well as customers) who are unwilling to state an obvious truth due to apathy, ignorance, or indifference: that the current state of customer service is unacceptable.

Here are three glaring examples of behaviors that I regularly observe in retail settings that store management appears to tolerate (because these behaviors are chronic):

1.) Routinely, I observe aloof employees checking their text, email, and social media accounts on their phones. Employees have one set of eyes and if they’re affixed to a handset screen they cannot be scanning for customers in need of service.

2.) I regularly walk past employees who are smoking near the main entrances to stores. Not only is this an eyesore, it’s disrespectful to customers and absolutely avoidable for a management team willing to establish and enforce minimal standards.

3.) Frequently, I encounter employees complaining about their schedules, coworkers, and even other customers. Customers should not be subjected to this toxic banter. In fact, customers should not be subjected to banter at all. Employees, in deference to their customers, should cease personal conversations while in the presence of customers. Instead, engage the customer regarding his or her shopping experience. There will be plenty of time for you to resume your conversation with your coworkers later—without making your customer feel non-existent, like a store fixture.

What’s happened to our sensibilities? It’s not okay to check your email or text a friend in full view of a customer. Besides the unsanitary perception, it’s wrong (and illegal in many locations) to smoke near the building entrance where customers must pass through employees’ secondhand smoke to spend their money. And it’s disrespectful—not to mention awkward—to complain in front of a customer or to carry on a conversation with a coworker in the presence of a customer. The emperor’s wearing no clothes and no one seems to want to acknowledge it!

What happens in most cases is that: a.) there are no credible standards in place to enforce; b.) even though standards are in place (usually in the employee handbook that hasn’t been cracked since each page was initialed during employee orientation), mangers are unaware of them or apathetic towards their enforcement; or c.) managers themselves engage in the same indifferent behaviors!

I could have used a lot of words just now to describe this behavior (e.g., poor, unacceptable, reprehensible, etc.) but I chose indifferent. I chose that word because that’s how I perceive these employees behave towards me: indifferently—as though my presence makes no difference and I really don’t matter all that much.

Here’s a litmus test I like to use when determining whether or not an employee’s behavior is acceptable: If I were the division president conducting an on-site visit, would this employee behave the same way? Would his manager tolerate it then?

If the answer to that question is “no” then clearly, instead of being some pet peeve of mine, the behavior is unacceptable. If the division president was on-site, everyone would get the message from management, loud and clear, that there would be absolutely no texting their friends while “on the floor,” no smoking near the main store entrance and no audible complaining or personal conversations with coworkers in the presence of the division president.

Even without the message from management, front-line hourly employees know better than to do these things in front of the division president. In fact, most of them will be on their very best behavior and productivity will likely soar in the days and hours preceding the executive’s visit.

So, why the double standard? Why is it okay to behave indifferently toward customers and roll out the red carpet for the division president? Why do employees paint, wax the floors, and polish the chrome for the division president and text friends, smoke, and complain and banter in the presence of customers? I have a theory about this but I’ll save it for a future post. For now, suffice it to say that this behavior is unacceptable.

I’m sure this post won’t be popular with many employees. That’s understandable because, based on my experience, customer service and, in some cases, work ethic aren’t popular either with the same employees.

Companies need to acknowledge that the emperor is not wearing any clothes. They must establish standards and then hire employees who can meet and exceed these standards. National unemployment is near 10 percent. Employers can afford to be picky. Be picky. Once hired, employees’ performance must be managed. This means that managers must communicate, reinforce, and model these standards—regardless of whether or not the division president is stopping by.

Now, put away the phone, find a different place—far, far away from customers—to smoke, and resolve never to complain or carry on personal conversations with coworkers in the presence of customers again. It’s awkward for customers and undermines customer service.

Take a stand during this Customer Service Week. Look around your operation. If you see the behaviors highlighted in this post in full view of customers or if you detect employee apathy or indifference towards serving customers, call out, “The Emperor is naked!”

Using this as your battle cry, initiate a revolution to treat every customer like the division president—with courtesy, respect, and care. Not just during Customer Service Week, but every week of the year. You will be amazed by the results you see in your customers’ satisfaction as well as your own job satisfaction.

Okay, here comes the Emperor’s procession. Get ready…

I recently bought some fresh fish at Whole Foods Market. As is customary, I waited my turn as customers who arrived before me had their orders fulfilled. When it was my turn, an employee behind the counter smiled, made eye contact, and with enthusiasm in his voice asked, “Did you see something you liked?”

As much as I appreciate quality products and friendly service, so far it had been a pretty predictable shopping experience. Whole Foods isn’t cheap and has a reputation for better than average product and service quality intended to justify the higher prices. When I shop there, I expect for the store to be extra clean, for the products to be extra fresh, and for the staff to be extra knowledgeable and helpful.

On this day, I watched as the employee gathered up the salmon fillets I had selected. He handled the fish with care, applying olive oil and seasoning as requested to each side of the fillets. As good as the service was, so far there was nothing out of the ordinary.

Having oiled and seasoned the fillets, the employee then wrapped them in butcher paper. He then handed them to me over the counter with a broad smile and said, “Here you are. Is there anything else I can get for you?”

I said that I was all set and thanked him for his help. Still, as great as the product and service quality had been, there had been nothing that made an impression—that had stuck out as being particularly memorable. What happened next changed all that.

As I looked at the wrapped fish, I noticed it had been wrapped in a customized butcher paper—made to look like newsprint—bearing the name: Seafood Times. Beneath the masthead were a variety of informative and entertaining stories such as Whole Foods Market Pleads Guilty to Seafood Discrimination and Make Your Kitchen a Safe Harbor.

Instead of bland and uneventful brown butcher paper, I had received something extra: a unique and refreshing version that had been customized by Whole Foods to extend my experience from the store to my home. All of a sudden, what had been a predicable transaction at the seafood counter transformed into a memorable service experience. I now had a powerful memory of my visit and a story to share with others.

When so many retail transactions are characterized by indifference, experiences like this one are a breath of fresh air. Companies that go the extra mile to surprise and delight customers will not only make headlines, they will make lasting impressions their customers will remember when it’s time to buy.