Being customer obsessed isn’t something you do… It’s who you are!
I get asked all the time what a “Customer Obsessed Project” might look like for a particular company…this translates to, “I don’t really get Customer Obsession.” Projects have “start and end dates”…being Customer Obsessed never ends…it is you new WAY OF LIFE.
CUSTOMER OBSESSION isn’t like doing a customer satisfaction survey where you decide to collect some information and then you are finished. It also isn’t like starting and stopping some “customer campaign” where you are going to do something nice for your customer. And it certainly isn’t a “thank you” event to tell your customers how much you appreciate them…one time a year.
Customer Obsession is what you live, eat, and breathe every day, 365 days a year. It is simply the way you run your company…always putting the customers’ well-being in front of everything else you are doing. If you look at the definition in the dictionary, it says something like this…
OBSESSION: the domination of one’s thoughts or feelings based on a persistent idea, image, desire, etc.
…to think about something unceasingly or persistently; dwell obsessively upon something
When you apply this definition to your customer’s it takes on a very special meaning…to think about your customer unceasingly or persistently…this is CUSTOMER OBSESSION.
If you incorporate this into how you treat your customers, what kind of experience you give them, how you create products, how you serve them, and how you HELP them, you can start to understand what building a company around your customer could look like.
What would change if you did everything with the intent of helping your customers’ day, life, or company with every interaction from every one of your employees…how would this change the way you are viewed by your customers as compared to your competition?
What would change if you designed your product or service specifically around your customer so that you knew it would help them improve their life however they were going to use it?
And what would change if you created a CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE that was truly incredible and remarkable for your customers, designed completely with the in mind so your customers would say, “WOW, I always feel incredible and very special whenever I interact with anyone in your company, regardless of whether I am inquiring, buying, or complaining…you rock!!”
As the Business Owner, CEO, or leader in your company, do you think if these things happened your customer might tell someone else about you? Do you think they would go out of their way to tell others who might need your product or service someday that they should go see you first?
Do you think they might become an ADVOCATE for you and your company?
The answer to all of these is a resounding YES, they would tell others how incredible you are because everything you do, who you are, how you treat your customers is something they LOVE and RESPECT and APPRECIATE from you. You are making a difference in their life in some way that is better than anyone else and you are treating them as something special rather than someone with cash in their pocket to pay you for your product or service.
This is the difference between Industrial Revolution “product and service centric” companies in the past century and a Customer Obsessed organization in the new Digital/Internet Revolution we live in today.
This is all about CULTURE…the culture you want in your company.
We hear often from very well respected authorities in business and business leaders that culture is the key to their success. Having really great employees is the answer and you can do great things when you have a culture that supports what you want to achieve. I completely agree…this is about establishing a culture. The real question is what kind of culture do you want to establish?
To be successful as a Customer Obsessed company you need a Customer Obsessed Culture. One where every employee is not only excited about coming to work every day and enjoys working with other employees but where they LOVE SERVING THE CUSTOMERS. This is what differentiates a company with a great culture from one that has a great culture AND delivers and over the top incredible and remarkable experience.
And when you ask for innovation, most focus on products and services. These are not bad areas to focus on but when your company is customer obsessed, they add one more focus…innovation in the Customer Experience as well. Now the employees are always thinking of better and more unique ways they can deliver an incredibly remarkable and memorable experience to their customers.
This is a game changer and one that truly establishes your brand as something unique and different.
Being CUSTOMER OBSESSED is truly a coveted position for any company to achieve. It isn’t easy and it always starts at the very top. If the top leader isn’t on board, it won’t happen. If they are committed to it and behind it you can see some amazing things happen…there are plenty of examples out there in the market from small companies to Fortune 500 companies. You are probably thinking of one you know as you read this post.
Your company can be among this elite group of companies. Are you ready to make this a way of life and not the next “check box” on the project to-do list? If so, you are already ahead of probably every competitor in your industry. Today is DAY ONE as Jeff Bezos of Amazon always says to his teams…and he’s done OK with this approach. Is today the day you decide to be “all in” with your customers and become Customer Obsessed? I would love to hear from you if you have and share with you some additional insights into what this will mean for your future success.
