The client experience is made up of many components.
Components that coexist and work in an integrated fashion to produce both happy clients and successful campaigns.
The best client experiences set boundaries and expectations, speak to concerns and needs proactively, and provide personalized and unique attention to detail.
Easier said than done.
Especially if you are balancing multiple clients, with different needs, fears, and personalities.
That’s why, when I see organizations doing things that accomplish all three in a single, scalable tactic, I pay close attention—and you should too.
A Dog-Gone Awesome Client Experience
When I travel, my furry child Oliver, goes to “dog camp,” otherwise known as Roscoe’s Bed and Bark.
He loves Roscoe’s.
I love Roscoe’s.
And while my wallet doesn’t necessarily love Roscoe’s (which consistently ends up being the most expensive part of any travel plans), I NEVER balk at the price because they prove to me over and over and over again they are worth every penny.
Now Roscoe’s does a ton of things to distinguish themselves—not just from other kennels—but from other equally priced, specialized doggy camps, but today I want to focus on one tactic which accomplishes all three client experience objectives I noted above:
- Set boundaries and consistent expectations;
- Speak to client’s concerns and needs proactively; and
- Provide personalized and unique attention to detail.
The Daily Report Card
At the end of each day, Roscoe’s emails me a daily report card (consistent expectations).
Now, a lot of doggy day camps do this, but Roscoe’s does it better than anyone I’ve experienced.
Let’s break down the elements:
Photos of Oliver’s Day
At the top of the report card is a scrolling selection of photos of Oliver’s day. I can look through and see my man is happy, health, at his typical level of crazy, and playing happily with other dogs.
I also can click on a photo and either share it through social media or download it to save for later (hello genius content distribution strategy, because who isn’t going to share photos of their dogs…EVERYWHERE).
Demeanor
Next I get a list of Oliver’s demeanor throughout the day.
He often is described as “charming” and “everyone’s best friend,” because that’s how we roll in the extroverted Petrolino household.
Notes
Finally (my favorite part), are the additional comments and notes.
Here is where Roscoe’s really defines themselves in attention to detail and exceptional content marketing (I told our team the other day I’d like to hire the writer).
Let me give you an example.
Here is one from election day:
Well the votes are in, and it was unanimous-everyone voted Yes on a Woof-tastic day, and we’re excited! Today started off with everyone meeting up, to chat, romp around and go over all their thoughts on today’s election. Then it was time to cast the BALL-ot, and no-one was more excited than Oliver to see that BALL-ot cast-so he could go fetch, of course! Later in the day, it was time for everyone to head outside and burn all that early morning voting-jitters and play some fun games of hide-and-go seek! After some of the excitement had wound down, it was time to come back in and catch a nice snoozer. Afterwards, everyone geared back up and enjoyed a ton more playing and running around!! Oliver had a vote-tastic day, and we hope you did too!! Happy Voting!!
Genius, right?
Scalable and Customized
As your client roster grows it can become increasingly difficult to provide detailed and personalized client experience, yet remain scalable.
You can only be so many places at once and juggle so many balls.
Finding consistent yet personalized solutions is crucial.
Roscoe’s does a great job at finding this balance with these report cards, and I look forward to them every.single.day.
What companies do you work with that have similar, effective tactics?
Love these examples (and sent to my awesome friend who has a pet care biz). I’m drawing a complete blank on who else is incredible at service, so I’ll be back once some organization comes to mind!
You better be back….or else!!! 🙂
I’m back! So away with all that “or else” nonsense. I wish I could find the video to back this up but ….I think another thing your experience speaks to is transparency. It takes a lot to let people / customers see every action you take, and it means you have enough confidence in your work you don’t have to stage a “show” — you can just take images of the animals going about their day. A friend shared a video of his car repair place actually walking through the oil change or whatever it was — explaining step by step what they were doing with his car. The services weren’t occurring in a black hole of nothingness, and all of us who saw the video thought “hmmm…..now I know how they’ll treat MY car.” Awesomeness.
That’s such a great example of transparency, Paula. Especially in a business where “you don’t to know” is the power word.
Agreed! I LOVE that. And it reminded me of a practice of another doggy day care I’ve gone to, which is cameras, everywhere. You can login and check-in on your dog, watch him play, and take screenshots through out the day. Hmmm…..that makes me think…..
Laura–Thank you for spotlighting this example. It’s not just pets (who are like family members.)
Many marketers could apply this approach to their content and social media. Targeted emailing with shareable photos. You have to determine how to show your work in a way that appeals to your customers and prospects. Then encourages them to share it.
It also underscores the fact that you’ll keep opening their emails. They’ve become part of your “content inner circle”.
Happy marketing,
Heidi
Heidi Cohen
Actionable Marketing Guide
Yes, exactly. The same concepts can be applied in many different ways. And each email supplies unique (adorable) value, which encourages me to not just open, but wait anxiously for them to arrive. That’s every marketer’s dream.
This is so ‘doggone’ cute! Badabump! This is a great example of everything done right. It’s informative in an attention-grabbing way, puts the customer’s mind at ease, let’s the customer know they are important and well-cared for, and encourages the customer to help grow the biz through word of mouth(or social media as the case may be).
LOL! Do you know how excited I was to use “dog-gone” in one of my subheads! LOL! And yes to all of this! Such a great integration of paid (email), shared (social sharing), owned (content), and customer service dynamics.
It’s all about personalized customer experience, as Gini said last week.
Everyone can learn from Roscoe’s Bed and Bark, whether professional to improve their jobs or business owners to improve their businesses. Thanks for sharing, Laura.
And you can personalize without it being ridiculously resource expensive (both time and money). That’s what I love most about this example. It’s scalable, but doesn’t lose it’s power
Laura you see life through many work-related lenses. In this example, client services. That shows your passion. It also shows your sickness–the belief that everything connects back to your passion. Stay sick.