Anticipatory Service
Whenever I get the chance, I enjoy staying at a particular hotel. If I want to do something special with someone, I take them along. I do so for the sheer joy of sharing such a special experience. The hotel is 6 star and world class. Upon arrival, an entourage awaits you. Every door, including your car door, is opened for you. An impeccable staff manages your luggage, and your car is whisked away for safekeeping as you are ushered into its palatial interior. A well dressed gentleman stands waiting in the lobby to be sure you quickly find the front desk. As you are assigned your room (generally an upgrade), the bellman stands with your luggage in tow, ready to lead the way.
The room is meticulous and well supplied with every amenity. "Would you like me to unpack your luggage? I’d be more than happy to, sir! Is there anything you need?” If not, the bellman politely says "I’ll let you get settled in.” But before leaving he quizzes you as to every imaginable potential need. It seems as though they’ve thought of everything—and they have.
Anticipatory Service is the main reason I enjoy staying at this particular hotel. They do this day in and day out and for them, practice has made perfect! They’ve mastered the art of Anticipatory Service.
The grounds are spotless, landscape superb. As magnificent fountains pour generously, the perfect music of the falling water is both peaceful and serene. Meanwhile, you are captivated by the backdrop of a panoramic view of the Pacific Ocean. Staff is carefully stationed throughout the property, standing by to provide towels for swimming, a cool drink or whatever your need may be as you stroll the grounds.
After a day of enjoyment, you return to your room with to find bathrobes gracefully placed at the foot of a perfectly turned down and inviting bed. Slippers lay on each side of the bed along with a tray filled with complimentary items you just might need—everything from a shoehorn to a flashlight. And yes, there are mints on your pillow.
It seems they’ve thought of everything. They have! They have anticipated your every need and carefully provided it. They don’t need advertisements because thrilled visitors leave bragging about the splendid environment and incredible service. Problems are almost non-existent; they’ve prevented them by tirelessly fashioning an environment where they shield the guests from the slightest issue. The phone rings. Who could that be? Not to worry, it’s the concierge simply calling to be certain that you are completely satisfied and that there nothing else you need before you retire.
How did they develop and master such excellence?
As business person I’ve pondered, just how they have mastered such high standards and achieved such success, quality service and impeccable reputation. My conclusion? They’ve carefully considered their customers’ needs and over time developed a comprehensive system that thoroughly meets those needs. Anticipatory service!
As a business, we’ve also made it our goal to pattern ourselves after their approach. Not so much in the sense of luxury, but rather as a guiding philosophy and business practice. We strive to take full advantage of the fact that we do the same things over and over every day and are utilizing that repetition to identify problems and refine our organization.
We are learning by seeing our customers and employees struggle from time to time doing business with and/or working for us. We cannot help but ask ourselves, Why not make a provision to avoid that struggle? Why not view our customers and employees as guests and provide them that same kind of experience and hospitality while they are in our care? Why not tell them what they need to know before they need to know it, instead of frustrating them by forcing them to chase the information, quality and the service they long for? Why not learn from their frustration when we don’t quite measure up? Why not use our interaction with them to learn how to provide anticipatory service?
Why not take full advantage of their complete satisfaction to do our advertising? After all, word of mouth is the highest form of advertising, and it’s free once you’ve earned that reputation—once you’ve mastered the art of anticipatory service!
My company recently experienced a perfect example of how our efforts are paying off. Two neighbors, both presidents of corporations, were chatting. One asked the other (our customer) if he knew of a good drywall company. The inquiring neighbor had several large projects coming up and hadn’t been able to find a drywall company that he was satisfied with.
Our customer recommended us with some very flattering comments and emailed me to say that his friend and neighbor of 22 years had that conversation and gave me his neighbor’s contact info. Since then we’ve secured nearly $2 million in sales based on that simple conversation and our goal to provide anticipatory service.
If ever you get out into my neck of the woods, that is to say Southern California, plan a visit. Where? The St. Regis Monarch Beach in Dana Point, Calif. (Phone: (949) 234.3200).
Typically I wouldn't advertise for another business, especially in a public format. But these guys are so good at what they do, I can't help myself. Moreover, the type of advertising I'm doing is the most powerful advertising available, and it's free. As a business owner, it's precisely what you want going on: word-of-mouth advertising! Money can't buy it. It is purchased by diligent effort, continual improvement and a disposition to get to know your customers and proactively meet their needs before they ever realize they need them. Anticipatory Service!
Such advertising is voluntary, convincing and when it's provided by a non-biased and unrewarded, reliable individual, it really works. It motivates potential customers to give such businesses a try. Your customers are talking, and when it comes to your business, it's going to be good or bad. I think we'll both agree that good is better than bad.
If you're going to master Anticipatory Service, you are going to be proactive. It's all about doing things before they need to be done. You have to learn to tell customers and employees what they need to know before they need to know it. If your customers or employees have to come to you for information, you've failed to be both proactive and will ultimately fail at Anticipatory Service.
If your customer calls you about a problem, you've got two problems and in my view, one is worse than the other. You've got a problem, and they found it before you did. Why didn't you find that problem and fix it before they pointed it out? You weren't proactive.
Practice Makes Perfect
What you want to do is anticipate customers'/employees' needs and make a provision to meet those needs before they develop. How do you do so? Practice! We do this stuff every day. Use your everyday problems and determine where your organization and customers struggle. Once you've done so, take proactive measures to prevent such problems.
Ask yourself this question: Are customers and employees guided or left to grope their way through what they think they should do? Are you providing them a clear path to doing successful business? Now, use that answer to identify priorities that eliminate the biggest areas where the struggle occurs. Don't stop anywhere until you're providing Anticipatory Service.
Nothing Is Easy, Without Hard Work!
It is said that the word "facilitate' comes from a Latin word that means "to make easy.' But when you set out to offer excellence as a business, you'll find out in a hurry, nothing is easy. So figure out how to make things as easy as possible. For people to love to do business with you, it has to be easy. You'd be surprised how easy some hard things can get once you develop systems and procedures to make them simple. Develop job descriptions, SOP and a quality control program, and survey your customers regularly - you won't be sorry. Do the heavy lifting, your business will be stronger, the weaknesses will disappear and the rewards will be bountiful.
At some point this market is going to turn around and general contractors will be a lot less interested in Motel 6 and whole lot more interested in the St. Regis Hotel. Right now, it's all about the money. Some day - hopefully soon, the GCs will have the money to pay for reliable quality and anticipatory service. If your business is a St. Regis, you'll be in high demand.
I don't know about you, but we know where we want to be: providing Anticipatory Service!
