{"id":50695,"date":"2023-05-10T11:00:32","date_gmt":"2023-05-10T11:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hyken.com\/?p=50695"},"modified":"2023-08-21T18:36:39","modified_gmt":"2023-08-21T18:36:39","slug":"how-to-break-the-rules-and-delight-customers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hyken.com\/customer-service-strategies\/how-to-break-the-rules-and-delight-customers\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Break the Rules and Delight Customers"},"content":{"rendered":"\"Find<\/span>\r\n

Delight Customers<\/h2>\r\nThere is a massive benefit to empowering employees to \u201cbreak the rules\u201d to delight customers. And what I mean by \u201cbreaking the rules\u201d is to consider what you can do for a customer outside of the norm that doesn\u2019t cost the company money, isn\u2019t illegal or immoral, and won\u2019t hurt \u201cbusiness as usual.\u201d In reality, employees aren\u2019t breaking any rules. They are finding ways to take care of the customer while not breaking the \u201crules\u201d mentioned above. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nOne of the concepts I cover in my <\/span>customer service keynote speech<\/span><\/a> is the idea of the \u201cline in the sand.\u201d Many companies train their employees in what they <\/span>can\u2019t <\/span><\/i>do for customers. They have \u201crules\u201d that have little or no flexibility. While essential for employees to be trained on what they shouldn\u2019t do, it may be more important to train them on what they can do. By that, I mean how far employees are allowed to go before they have to say \u201cNo.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n

The Line in the Sand concept<\/h3>\r\nI call this <\/span>The Line in the Sand<\/span><\/i> concept. It is important to draw that line, which is the boundary that employees aren\u2019t allowed to cross, but at the same time, teach them what they can do to get right up to the line.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nFor example, I have a client in the luxury automobile market. This client has a team that travels to auto dealerships to help dealers with demanding customers they can\u2019t seem to please. Members of this team believe in the power of saying \u201cYes\u201d instead of \u201cNo.\u201d They have the authority to refund the entire price of the car, even if it\u2019s 10 years old. That\u2019s their <\/span>line in the sand \u2013 <\/span><\/i>their last resort. They can get right up to it but can\u2019t go past it. And by the way, they have never made it to that last resort. They have always found other ways to make discontented customers happy without getting to that line.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n

The key is training<\/span><\/h3>\r\nThe key is training, but it isn\u2019t just imparted in one session to tell employees what to do \u2013 or not do. It\u2019s about continuously sharing stories of what other employees are doing to meet customers\u2019 needs and demands, all without crossing the <\/span>line in the sand<\/span><\/i>. When an employee does something right, congratulate them and share the example with others. And if they do something wrong, or in other words, if they <\/span>cross the line<\/span><\/i>, turn it into a learning opportunity that is also shared with others. Routinely sharing examples helps employees recognize their opportunities to delight their customers.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nSome examples of \u201cbreaking the rules\u201d might be honoring a warranty that expired a month ago \u2013 or stretching a 14-day return policy to the 15th or 16th day. Some retail organizations, like Nordstrom, have an easy, no-questions-asked return policy. Even though the employees at Nordstrom aren\u2019t breaking the rules, the customer feels they are going above and beyond. That\u2019s all this really is. Making customers feel like you are on their side, willing to be flexible, and giving them reasons to say, \u201cI\u2019ll be back!\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n