Emotional and logical customer satisfaction: know the difference?
December 14, 2010Why cruise holidays and social media are made for each other?
December 20, 2010
We are fast approaching Christmas and so I thought I’d run a little competition with an gift of a copy of my new book, RARE Business, for the winner. I’ll even sign it you like π
Anyway, the premise of the book is that building better relationships with your people and your customers can deliver sustainable growth.
The origin of the name RARE comes from a few places:
- If you look up the word RARE in the dictionary the most common definition of the word is something that is βseldom seenβ. However, there is another meaning that refers to something of βuncommon qualityβ or something that is βunusually greatβ. It is this second definition of the word that I refer to in the title; and
- A RARE Business is one where the business takes care of their existing customers as well as new customers, where it is trusted and liked, where doing business with it is consistently a good experience, where the business and its employees care about their customers and each other? and
- It also explains a process that I go through when working with companies to help them become more customer centric or help them grow their business.
The RARE process that we use is outlined below. The questions below each of the headings are some of the typical questions that we would seek to address in each stage.
- R – esearch
- Where are you?
- Where do you think you are?
- Where do your customers think you are?
- How do you compare with your competitors?
- Can we test-drive your customer experience and tell you what we think?
- A – im
- Where do you want to be?
- What is your strategy to create your RARE business?
- Are there any limits that you need to take into account?
- R – oadmap
- How will you get there from here?
- What needs to be done with your customers, people and leadership in order to make this happen?
- What other resources do you need?
- E – xecute
- What can we do to help you make that happen in terms of consultancy, project management, group and one to one training?
However, recently Stefan across at SME-blog.com and Winweb ran a competition for his readers to win a signed copy of the book. In the comments, Becky Blackmore of MeetBusinessPartners left the following comment:
Good customer care comes from:
**R- eliability: consistently good quality service.
**A- ppreciation: for your customersβ needs.
**R- apport: a good relationship means repeat business.
**E- xemplary staff: trained to put the customer first.
It is Vital for customers walk away happy, having had a positive experience so they are more likely to come back repeatedly and spend more money with you. Repeat business boosts sales which increases staff moral which improves productivity which helps the economy and on top of ALL that, if customers like you and your service/product they will also recommend others to use you and the whole process repeats!
That comment got me to thinking. What else do you think RARE could mean in the context of building a customer and people centric business?
The best comment or description of what RARE could mean will win a copy of the book and I’ll ship it to you wherever you are.
Thanks to Kymberly Janisch and dieselbug2007 for the images.
26 Comments
R-einvigorating
A-spirational
R-evolutionary
E-volutionary
A rare business excels at the commonplace to the point it’s noticeable but also reinvents as necessary.
Hi Matt,
Nice! I like it.
Let’s see what everyone else comes up with in the next day or so.
Adrian
@bblc @doctormick Can u come up with a cool meaning for RARE? Win a copy of RARE Business at http://bit.ly/h66ghB
@KateBacon @andy1509 @AveusLLC Can u come up with a cool meaning for RARE? Win a copy of RARE Business at http://bit.ly/h66ghB
@bigredtomato @coblyn @HeavenAndEl @Kruby Can u come up with a cool meaning for RARE? Win a copy of RARE Business at http://bit.ly/h66ghB
I already have a copy of your excellent book as you know Adrian but can never resist the chance to stretch my linguistic muscles a little so try this for size:
Relationship-centred
Authentic
Rewarding
Empowering
I also offer you a rare Haiku:
Relationships first
Love customers old and new
Wow with every sale!
(With a little bit of artistic license on the word ‘every’ (no one really says ev-e-ry anymore anyway ;-))
Hi El,
I knew that you wouldn’t be able to resist the challenge π
And a great effort with a Haiku thrown in too. I wonder if that is what is called under promising and over delivering π
As you have a copy of the book, if you win you can nominate who you want to send it to and I’ll send a personalised copy from you to them signed by me. Make sense?
Adrian
RT @adrianswinscoe: Competition: What does RARE mean to you? http://bit.ly/dZJNJx
Ok, here goes:
Reliable – we do what we say, always
Authentic – who we are is clear to our customers
Raring to go – we LOVE what we do
Enlightened – we do things differently
Thanks for the invite Adrian π
Nice, one, Kate.
Thanks for having a go. You are all coming up with some great stuff. I’m going to have to think hard about how I am going to judge this π
Adrian
Adrian,
In the spirit of doing the unexpected:) I’m going to do this from the bottom up, because the more important word happens to come at the end of RARE.
E-volving: if a business does not embrace change and adapt to new conditions they will ultimately be consumed by competition.
R-adiant: Full of life
A-rtistic: Edifies mastery and supports evolving through creativity
R-sourceful: Doing more with less, connected to “source”
This was fun, thanks for making me think…
Bill
Hi Bill,
Why am I not surprised π
Yours is a great effort. Thank you for pitching in. Like I said to Kate in the comments above you are making it hard so I am going to have to think about how I am going to judge this…..hmmm.
Thanks again,
Adrian
Competition: What does RARE mean to you? http://bit.ly/fGphFx
Great definitions Adrian! RT @adrianswinscoe: Competition: What does RARE mean to you? http://bit.ly/fGphFx
Hi Adrian,
What a great idea!
I am going to have to go away and think and of course it will be in the context of Twitter π
Wendy
Hi Wendy,
That’s great and I’m really looking forward to the Twitter spin on RARE π
Adrian
Check out this this competition: What does RARE mean to YOU? http://bit.ly/fGphFx in business please RT
Check out this this competition: What does RARE mean to YOU? http://bit.ly/fGphFx in business please RT
Hi Adrian!
Love this contest idea – you’ve had some really awesome responses, too! I think El’s is my favorite so far, just because the Haiku was irresistible… π
Okay, here’s my go at it:
R-esilient: no matter what happens, we bounce back and move on to even greater things.
A-ction: we don’t just think and talk about things, we take ACTION to get them done, even if we aren’t sure how to do it perfect yet.
R-efurbish: we know that our solutions won’t usually be found in the newest and greatest shiny objects, but rather in the tried and true principles that others have used before us – we just have to refurbish and repurpose them to work for us and our businesses here and now.
E-xcitement: we know that once we lose that excitement and passion, it’s time to rekindle it or move on, because doing something without passion is just not worth it.
Awesome exercise – thanks for inviting me to think about this! π I’m sure I could come up with several different versions of this – but I like this one for now. π
Hi Jess,
Thank you and welcome to the competition π
I think judging is going to be tough but the responses have been superb so far.
Thanks for dropping by and having a go and let’s see how you get on π
Best of luck,
Adrian
Thanks Adrian,
I really enjoyed reading your RARE process and taking the time to think about Twitter and how I can create a similar process, this is my first draft and will be a work in progress.
Thanks for the inspiration!
Relevant
β’ What are your customers/clients needs?
β’ What do your customers need to know about your business/ field of expertise?
β’ How does your call to action sit in line with your Twitter marketing goals?
Articulate
β’ Are your Tweets specific and to the point
β’ Are your Tweets in plain English and RT βretweetableβ
β’ Are your Tweets clear enough so people know exactly what it is you want them to do?
Reliable
β’ Are the links you are providing credible and reliably sourced?
β’ Are your Tweets consistent in tone and language?
β’ What experience do you want your customers to have?
Enabling
β’ Are your Tweets adding value to your community?
β’ How do you enable and support your Twitter community?
β’ How approachable are you really?
Wendy π
Hi Wendy,
Wow! A masterclass in Twitter-ness all wrapped up in a RARE blanket. Nice. I like it.
I’ll let everyone know in the next couple of days who the winner is.
Thanks for joining in,
Adrian
Hi Adrian,
Thanks for the mention in your blog! Lots of great comments above! Can’t wait to read the book! π
Beck.
Hi Becky,
You are very welcome. Thank you for providing the original inspiration for the RARE acronym competition.
Look forward to hearing what you think of the book π
Adrian
Hi Everyone,
And the winner is……..*drum roll*….
El Edwards π
Congratulations, El, I just couldn’t resist the Haiku.
Well done to everyone that took part. Thank you.
Adrian
Are your Tweets RARE http://bit.ly/g0PbI9 inspired by @adrianswinscoe recent competition > What does RARE mean to you http://bit.ly/h66ghB