Through the Eyes of Your Customers

You may have watched the CBS hit TV show “Undercover Boss.”  Each week the cameras follow a corporate executive who goes “undercover” to participate in various jobs.  They get a first-hand look at how their decisions impact the employees and their morale – and much more.

Yes, it is a bit of “Hollywood,” but don’t miss the incredible lesson it can teach us.  Recently I read an article about how David Dillon, chairman and CEO of Kroger, gets out from behind his desk to spend time in stores. He stands in line with customers and listens to their comments. He gets a view through the eyes of his customers, learning how to make their experience even better.

According to the article in Freep.com, Dillon tells Wall Street analysts that Kroger gets sophisticated data from Dunnhumby, a marketing company based in London.  However, the data can only tell part of the story, so Dillon chooses to “go undercover” to mingle with his customers and get first-hand consumer experience.

Do you need to go undercover? Of course not!

This is just one way of gathering important customer information.  Over twenty years ago, I wrote about how Anheuser-Busch executives took time to ride in delivery trucks, experiencing what was happening in the field.  They would talk to the owners of grocery stores, restaurants, convenience stores – anywhere that sold Anheuser-Busch products.  The executives didn’t go undercover but had the right idea of getting first-hand information from their customers.  Perhaps that is why they are at the top of their industry.

This type of program shouldn’t be reserved for high-level executives.  What if you developed a program where key employees spent time mingling with their customers?  I bet they would bring back some very insightful comments that could help all employees understand the importance of what they do.

The goal is simple: Learn through the eyes of your customers.

Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops at www.Hyken.com. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.

(Copyright ©MMXI, Shep Hyken)