Earlier this year I blogged about my admiration for Disney and how they differentiate themselves. Having just come back from Disneyland park (yes, again) I just had to gush some more. Before you start thinking this is going to be a long advertisement for Disney parks, I want to let you know it is actually about the concept of exceeding expectations in general. Disney just happens to be exceptionally good at it.
There is this concept in customer service of exceeding customer expectations and it is more than just a passing fad. Companies that do it well profit enormously from spin-off revenue, repeat business and free referrals. There is a cost involved and many companies tend to cut corners or not really put any effort into it at all. One company that does an exceptionally good job of exceeding expectations is the Walt Disney Company. This is not a particularly easy thing for them since Disney has set such a high bar for excellence already that exceeding it is difficult. However, they continue to do so and push that bar even higher.
This past week, I was at Disnelyland park in California (again) and took a series of photos of areas that the Disney Imagineers have created that were not necessary for the attraction, but only add ambiance for enhanced customer experience. This is a key part of the concept - enhance the things that will make your customers love you even if there is no possible financial return. Sometimes it is purely expense and the only return is increased customer satisfaction - but that is the important thing to remember. Happy customers will talk, and word of mouth advertising like that is absolutely priceless. The value from one good verbal, trusted referral is worth 10 billboards of advertizing.
Take a look at the set of photos below. If you have never been to Disneyland before, these are all shots of places that are not functionally required for the attractions. They are pathways, or sitting areas, or transitions, or even the back side of an attraction that most people never would see. These are things that Disney could have easily NOT done and people would still pay to visit and go on rides and buy churros - but how many people would return? Understanding that return customers are more valuable than new ones is the real key to exceeding expectations. The incurred expense of the areas in these photos serves only to turn "customers" into "ambassadors", but that has proven to be a valuable formula for Disney Corp. More companies should understand that concept.
If you are a Disney nut, I challenge you to guess at where these photos were taken. It is a fun exercise and interesting to see where Disney puts money just to enhance the customer experience. I have posted the answers on a separate page at http://mairs.ca/tom/blog11092012pics.
If you are a Disney nut, I challenge you to guess at where these photos were taken. It is a fun exercise and interesting to see where Disney puts money just to enhance the customer experience. I have posted the answers on a separate page at http://mairs.ca/tom/blog11092012pics.
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