Ever get a handwritten note? It was nice, wasn’t it?
When it comes to creating customer loyalty, handwritten notes are tough to beat. Like this one that a colleague of mine received on a Delta Air Lines flight.
He said it made him feel appreciated that the flight attendant took the time to give him a simple thank-you.
But this isn’t about how well handwritten notes work – that much is clear. This is about how you can execute them at scale.
Don’t Dictate the Messages
It’s not as simple as printing up a few thousand cards, handing them out to your customer-facing employees, and telling them to have at it. That’s a recipe for having the cards go unused, or getting uneven results when they do.
To combat this, companies might be tempted to provide “approved” messages that employees can just copy. That’s better than nothing, but results in stale, impersonal notes.
More importantly, people will write the notes because they have to. Not because they want to.
It Starts at the Top
If you want to create a campaign of handwritten notes with a personal touch, it starts with a culture of customer appreciation and love.
That starts at the top, and the CEO’s communication to employees. Building that kind of culture requires consistent, clear messaging.
Celebrate Employees
Whenever an employee does something to build customer loyalty, celebrate it! Share short stories on internal and external channels giving that employee proper kudos. It will make employees feel valued and encourage all of them to find their own ways to show customers the love.
Show, Don’t Tell
Don’t just tell people what to do. That lands of deaf ears and offers no context or purpose behind it. When you tell stories about your customers, and how important they are, it inspires employees to want to be part of the journey.
Repeat and Repeat
When you tell stories every day or week, each reflecting the theme of customer appreciation, the message will sink in. Before you know it, that theme is ingrained into your company culture.
By communicating clearly and consistently with your people, you can build a culture in which it’s clear how much the company loves its customers. Employees will share that sentiment, and are empowered to show employees that love.
When you’re ready, I can help you (and your team) with storytelling ideas, advice, and execution. Schedule an intro call here.