In the context of Zappos, a company whose stated purpose is To Live and Deliver WOW, wow is typically delivered over the phone, the humble vessel that Zappos considers to be its most important connection with customers. A culture book is a powerful way to focus the company on the core values. Navigating legal and regulatory changes can be challenging, but it's fundamental for entrepreneurs to ensure that their businesses are compliant. Once the core values were set, we began incorporating them into every aspect of Zappos; from hiring and onboarding to tough business decisions and customer interactions, our clearly defined core values have become the core of what makes Zappos Zappos. It seems like every other conversation I have with my aunt, who has elegant, narrow feet like you, has centered on this. As you can imagine, soon the two of them were besties. Each month, every employee is able to give a coworker $50. In this narrow sense, Zappos is serious about wanting you to call them; Hsiehs theory on this is that even though a very small percentage (fewer than 5%) of Zappos sales are made on the phone (almost all are made on the website), a much higher percentage of Zappos customers will call the company at some point in their life as customer. A lot of customers order as late as midnight EST, and are surprised when their orders show up on their doorstep eight hours later. Either way, Zappos is depending on customer service as marketing, trusting that the intimate engagements theyre having are enough to cement the loyalty of the customers on those calls and ensure that word of the Zappos brand will spread. Press Esc to cancel. A company has to utilize its marketing budget judiciously to move a customer from awareness to the purchase phase. Christa Foley is a culture champion and adviser at Zappos. People who study company culture come from all over the world to visit the Zappos offices to see how the company operates. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Refund a customer for a defective product, and then send a replacement for free. Your customer service strategy should be informed by an underlying customer service philosophy. If we missed our numbers even by a small amount, the banks had the right to walk away from the loans, creating a possible cash-flow crisis that might theoretically bankrupt us. We'll be in your inbox every morning Monday-Saturday with all the days top business news, inspiring stories, best advice and exclusive reporting from Entrepreneur. Zappos runs at 60-70% agent occupancy rather than industry norm which is somewhere in the 80s. We welcome your comments on the format at hello@chattermill.com or message us on LinkedIn. Zappos.com (Zappos), the top online shoe retailer,1 is ranked 31 on Fortune magazine's 2013 "Best compa-nies to work for" list,2 on which it has been for five years. Tony Hsieh decided they needed a bigger purpose than just making money. Id argue, in fact, that the best way to understand Zappos and its approach to customer service is by studying the chalkboard on the wall of Zappos onsite contact center. This starts with promoting the chance to call Zappos round the clockyoure invited to do so right at the top of the Zappos homepage, where, in their signature white on blue color scheme, they proclaim, Customer Service Available 24/7 at (800) 927-7671. Deeply Analyzing Zappos Customer Service Strategy - The Strategy Story 1. Turns out, thenumber one factorimpacting an agents experience at work is the empowerment they feel to offer customers unique resolutions. This whole transaction set precedent of what a smart acquisition is for the rest of the market. All this was happening at a bad time. This customer-centricity is extended throughout the Zappos website. With the shops not yet open, one could still buy the shoes online but it is a tougher challenge than waking up for a jogging session! They have been successfully executing their marketing strategy with a social focus since the first days of social media. The man is accusing the resort of negligence for allegedly making no effort to cool down the deck. If you get the culture right, then a lot of really amazing things happen on their own. - Tony Hsieh, CEO @ Zappos. The flowers arent what mattered here most. Develop a leadership purpose that combines your company goals with your agent well-being and performance to drive empowerment like Zappos. Generous may be an understatement. So investing in good customer service increases customer experience which in turn increases customer loyalty and CLTV, resulting in better topline and bottom line. Furthermore, they believed that people who could not connect to their customers culturally might not deliver a WOW experience. Zappos has built a brand powered by customer experience. The easiest way to define this vision is to create a set of statements that act as guiding principles. Zappos has set up its operations to fully support its strategy of being the company that provides the best customer service through a variety of ways: Supply Chain - Zappos has intentionally made the decision to insource all operations. Like all exceptional companies know that you cant build great products without genuinely understanding the voice of the customer. These will tell how Zappos managed to build such a solid customer base. . Zappos has taken numerous actions to ensure the best customer service, a couple of interesting ones are listed here. Your customer service and sales strategies aren't two separate ideas. Yes, HR paperwork needs to get done, but if customer obsession is your goal, put your money where your mouth is. She talked to him for nearly two hours exchanging stories and learning of Tommys nickname, gummy bear. No matter how great the product was!! Too many companies think of their call centers as an expense to minimise. - Tony Hsieh, CEO @ Zappos. It lets us have these in-depth, textured conversations with our customers. How to Create a Great Customer Experience Strategy - SuperOffice Don't force your customer service representatives to jump through multiple hoops before they can get approval to give their customers what they need -- give your employees the power to make executive decisions and watch your customers smile. 5 keys to extraordinary success at Zappos - The Business Journals This board, the Daily Breakdown Report, is a lot simpler than the kind of call analytics youll find at traditional contact centers. There are concerns about fit, feel, colors, textures, and many such things. Since its founding in 1999, Zappos has leveraged cutting-edge technology, social media presence, and excellent customer service practices to sell its products in a way that follows the ever-changing lifestyles of its consumers. They also have their warehouse conveniently located just 15 minutes away from the UPS Worldport hub. Zappos - Hiring for Culture and the Bizarre Things They Do Join us on our mission to build the first Unified Customer Intelligence Platform, Read the latest coverage about Chattermill in the news. Jeff Bezos and Amazon were such big admirers of their culture, operating model and dedication to customer experience, they acquired the business for $1.2bn. Zappo Case - Name 3 things that makes Zappos customer service so I define the Zappos/Amazon difference thus: Amazons site is set up for customers who want the fewest clicks and the most streamlined experience, while Zappos appeals to customers who enjoy a touch more backstory on the merchandise and have a bit more interest in the people who are selling it to them. For example, when people mention @Zappos on Twitter, they immediately go for it and solve the problem. Tony Hsieh ended up one by one selling off all of his apartments to fund the growth of Zappos. Contrary to most brands, it wasnt all talk. In fact, Zappos commits itself to delivering wowor at least a wow attempton every phone call that employees field in its contact center, employees who are called, in Zapposspeak, the Customer Loyalty Team. You can find this breathing space reflected in the metrics of the Zappos contact center. 3 Ways Companies Can Stand Out With Customer Service A customer goes through several steps in the customer journey before purchasing a product/service (refer above diagram). But cmon! Since its founding in 1999, Zappos has leveraged cutting-edge technology, social media presence, and excellent customer service practices to sell its products in a way that follows the ever-changing lifestyles of its consumers. Having the candidate's favorite drink ready for them when the interview starts? Kelli embraced whats important to us as people connection. It was acquired by Amazon in 2009 for $1.2 billion on the condition of not diluting the company culture. Unfortunately, the internet connection, ironically, is terrible, and we never get to see the full segment. Four Lessons on Culture and Customer Service from Zappos CEO, Tony Hsieh Depending on where you live, your monthly mortgage payment can be as low as $1,700 or as high as $3,600. So how did they become the most customer-obsessed brand in the world? Making exceptional service a critical part of the culture of the company itself. The base commander told Kelli that people like her make such a difference in the soldiers lives. Is Your Leadership Style More Steve Jobs or Elon Musk? Combined with the free 2-way shipping, this takes away the customers risk and makes it convenient for them to order as many shoes as they want, keep the ones that fit, and return the others at no additional cost. What a lot of people dont know is that the real reason Tony and his founder ended up selling the company was because company culture had completely gone downhill. What Zappos Taught Us About Creating The Ultimate Client - Forbes About Us | Zappos.com Now is the Best Time to Migrate From Avaya. The chalkboard has a second sector of hand-drawn stats that youll never see compiled at any other contact center, these telling how many flowers, cookies, postcards and unnamed wow gifts have been sent to customers in the previous month and previous year. Why did Michelin, a tire company, decide to rate restaurants? They have been successfully executing their marketing strategy with a social focus since the first days of social media. If you don't have established values, define them and make sure customer focus, service or obsession is one of them. One of the primary lessons in our new hire training is the importance of personal emotional connections (PEC) with customers. Breathing space is an essential element leading up to that moment as well, the moment when the agent encounters and strives to wow a live customer on the line. How much does the average organization spend on marketing and sales? It not only builds engagement but reaffirms your focus on delivering customer satisfaction. Initially named shoesite.com, it soon adopted the name Zappos derived from the Spanish word for shoes (Zapatos). And did they get bathroom breaks?. Pimped out conference rooms to set the stage for a genuine conversation rather than an interrogation? Our relaxed and supportive office environment allows individuals to show up authentically yes, even in their flip flops or footie pajamas. In essence, the customer is at the heart of every business. Contact Information | Zappos.com 6. Who would want to buy shoes online people thought? To WOW, you must differentiate yourself, which means do something a little unconventional and innovative. Get an overview of the Chattermill platform, and see Unified Customer Intelligence for yourself, Leverage your customer feedback to discover what your customers really think, Analyse customer support data to create retention-driving support experiences, Create product experiences your customers love, Analyse customer experiences from social media data to complete your VOC program, Master your customer feedback with deep-dive demos, Integrate your tech stack and create a truly unified view of your customers, Create better customer support experiences, Create retention-driving retail experiences, Get a unified, intelligent view of your customers.