Customers Love Companies That Deliver the Personal Touch. Make Sure You're One of Them.

Small notes that show you care can make a big difference to your business

I travel quite a bit. My wife Nina and I are looking to see more of the world each year. Facilitating, consulting, and speaking take me all over the place.

As a result, I have stayed in many different hotels. What makes a great hotel for me? How caring and engaged the staff is.

Yes, the room should be clean, not too small, everything should work, and the noise level should be very low. Those are all givens.

The personal touch is what makes the difference.

It is so important that some hotels are training their entire staff on how to make their guests feel appreciated and cared for. A New York Times article by Michael T. Luongo points out some hotels that have done so.

What makes me feel like I travel a lot is that the two hotels mentioned in the article, the JW Marriott Grand Rapids in Michigan and the Hampton Inn and Suites Columbus-Downtown in Ohio, I’ve stayed in!

Both hotels are at opposite ends of the level of luxury they offer. What is the same is the level of service.

The employees were trained to understand that the way they deal with guests is an important part of the experience the hotel is selling. That experience can make a big difference in whether a guest returns or looks for a different hotel the next visit.

What does your company do to train your employees that they are doing more than just remodeling someone’s home? Unfortunately, many remodeling companies do next to nothing. But what could you do?

• Ask your employees to share what makes them feel good when personally dealing with a service provider.
• At your regular company meetings, highlight those employees who made a point of helping a client above and beyond the call of duty.
• Celebrate simple things being done: Examples include picking up the client’s newspaper instead of driving over it; making sure all of the company’s employees know the names of the owners, their children, and their pets; and not parking in front of the neighbor’s mail box or in their favorite space.

Keeping this top-of-mind while the company works to get projects done positions your company as different in a good way.

None of what I am suggesting costs more money. It simply means focusing on the unmentioned needs of the people you are serving.

The result? More business from happy clients. Who wouldn’t want that?