The 10 Pillars of Exceptional Customer Service

Throughout my 33 years working as an Operations Executive with Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, we were constantly pushing the envelope to ensure our experiences and service levels were over-the-top. Theme parks are plentiful all over the world, so how do companies like Disney transform their experiences into something extraordinary and unmatched in the industry? Exceptional customer service is the key to doing this. Disney banks on it to drive guest satisfaction and intent-to-return. It’s their differentiator in the hospitality arena and, without a doubt, they do it better than anyone else.

Think about other brands and how they leverage their exceptional guest service to deliver outstanding results. Companies like Ritz-Carlton, Apple, and Trader Joe’s are absolutely obsessed with ensuring their customers are thrilled with the experience and are clamoring to return. When was the last time you had a bad experience with one of these companies? It just doesn’t happen. They know how to make it right and they know how to make it perfect.

Over the years, I have developed a menu of items which I constantly reference and leverage when I think about elevating service levels. In my mind, these 10 things are the pillars you need in order to consistently over-deliver on your service promise:

Leadership – You need inspirational, visionary leadership in place to move the needle. Put the best people in these roles. Clearly articulate your expectations and have processes and incentives in place to gauge and reward performance. Ensure your staff knows you’re available and willing to listen to their points of view. Be visible and approachable in the operation. Be a mentor, a developer, and a teacher to your employees. According to a recent Gallup survey, there can be a 70% variance in employee engagement caused by poor, ineffective management. Just like you can’t build a house without a foundation, you certainly can’t build a great team without exceptional leadership.

Right Fit Talent – This was always my focus and my goal at Disney. You have to be sure the right people are in the right roles at EVERY level from the CEO down to the part time hourly employees. Oh, and right fit talent is only part of the secret. The other component is building blended, well-mixed teams with a diverse skill set whereby each individual’s unique strengths compliments the entire team dynamic.

Employee Training and Satisfaction –Do you have the right training programs in place? Are you rewarding exceptional performance or are you spending too much time with detractors on your team? You need to develop a rich culture supported by staff members who WANT to exceed your expectations and want to be the BEST. Be as transparent as possible. Give them the “why” behind decisions you make. Create and nurture a sense of pride and ownership in their work. When people feel both prepared and appreciated, they will always rise to the equation and deliver for you.

The Guest Experience – Make sure your staff clearly knows your definition of exceptional customer service. Talk about it incessantly. Demonstrate and model it when you’re in the operation. Work along side your employees and let them see you in action. Empower them to make memories that can last a lifetime. Create customized, immersive experiences which transport people to a whole new dimension.

Solicit Feedback – You can get feedback a number of ways from real-time in-person interviews to comprehensive post-visit evaluations to internal employee surveys. Then, once you have the data, there are hundreds of ways you can slice and dice it to analyze your operation. The critical thing here is don’t just ask for the feedback, DO SOMETHING about it! I get so annoyed providing feedback that I know is going to be tossed aside and ignored. You have to demonstrate that you are willing to react and improve.

Operational Platform – Make sure your operation is dynamic and nimble and can support future  growth. Have the right processes, systems, accountabilities, and audits in place to ensure you’re functioning at an optimal level. Build an effective organizational structure that supports your business and your staff. Having the right operational platform in place guarantees happy customers, satisfied employees, improved metrics, and the ability to grow and expand.

“One Team” Mentality – Create one overarching experience, not individual ones made up of independent departments or people.  Strive to create an environment which transcends internal politics and personal agendas and can deliver on your customer service vision. Put another way, turn your silos into synergy! The same thing applies to situations where you have tenants leasing space in your complex. Think about Disney Springs at Walt Disney World. It’s a huge retail, dining, and entertainment district made up of dozens of 3^rd party operators, yet the overall guest experience there screams “Disney”. The result…one team, one experience, and millions of happy guests!

Empower Your Employees – Make them feel comfortable going the extra mile. Give them ideas on how to turn transactions into interactions. Equip them with the knowledge and confidence to make decisions on their own so that customers are unexpectedly thrilled. Teach them the art of “guest recovery” and allow them to immediately turn a negative situation into a great one.

Eliminate Lines and Hassles – Make your experience seamless and stress-free. Remove processes and redundancies which get in the way of your operation and your offerings. Make the experience intuitive to your guests so they know what to do and where to go. I recently passed through the TSA security checkpoint in Orlando and noticed literally hundreds of stanchions set up for a queue line that didn’t exist. It was nearly empty, yet they forced us to zig zag back and forth for no reason. Not seamless and certainly not hassle-free. You will find the opposite at Disney theme parks. You will never see an empty queue set up on their property. They have processes in place to quickly respond to increased traffic and can install a queue in no time. Definitely a much better experience for the customer.

Contingency Planning – Have backup systems and processes in place for everything so that when unplanned situations occur (and they will), you have a plan of action. Train your teams regularly on those contingency strategies and practice them in role playing activities so that everyone is comfortable, confident, and knows what to do. I was having breakfast today at a local diner when a power outage occurred. The staff there knew exactly how to respond and did so quickly and efficiently. It was flawless. Every operation should be able to smoothly transition to manual processes or backup plans when necessary.

How would you evaluate your operation or company in these ten areas? Do you have gaps or opportunities and need help? Visit my website to learn more about the services I offer to get you to the next level. Feel free to reach out to me for a free phone consultation or click here to schedule a call.