Jennifer Miller, MPH’s Post

Ever wonder why this tweet went viral? Let’s break down one example that’s more than meets the eye. Yes, Chewy delivered great customer service, and that deserves praise. But the tweet went viral because it resonated with tons of people who had similar experiences—they saw it, replied, and shared their own stories. Consider these impressive stats: Chewy creates 1,000 oil paintings of its customers’ pets per week and sends them as gifts! Chewy frequently sends flowers to customers when their pets pass away. Chewy has a team of over 2,500 trained customer service reps who respond quickly and kindly. Delighting one customer is fantastic. But when you consistently delight ALL your customers, they band together to shout your praises. That is how you go viral. When was the last time your customer service inspired a community? Aim to delight every customer, and watch as your brand becomes the talk of the town!

I know many have posted about Chewy before, but to all of those in my network in retail, I implore you to be more like Chewy. I typically try to shop local whenever possible, although I admit the convenience factor can sway me in certain categories. Over the last several years I have used Chewy primarily for their pharmacy for my dog Connor. Unfortunately, on Monday at just shy of 5 years, 8 months we had to say goodbye to Connor due to an incredibly fierce cancer. Yesterday, I reached Chewy customer service to cancel some upcoming shipments. Their CS team was helpful and empathetic, but not just in the normal way you expect a CSR to be. Today less than 24 hours later there were flowers on our doorstep with a nice note from the CSR and the rest of the "Chewy Family." I had heard of them doing this, but figured it was simply a random gesture, but it seems this is something they do for all of their customers. Next day flower delivery is not cheap, but the loyalty this gesture creates will make me a customer for live should we bring a new pet into our home. So I wonder, what can other retailers learn from Chewy? What goodwill gestures can the local retailer do, to enhance customer loyalty. Can they celebrate personal wins or major milestones? Can they like Chewy reach out when times are tough? Chewy as a national etailer has managed to create relationships typically reserved only for local brick and mortar business. So once again, be more like Chewy - the ROI is infinite!

That's how you run a business. Customer first.

I think my 6-year old twins are ready to work in QSR. Our convo on the way to school today: Liv & Ellie: Why didn't you pick up Starbucks like always? ☕ Me: Eh, it's gotten so expensive, I'm thinking I don't need to pick it up every day. (NOTE: We all have a willingness to pay ceiling, I finally hit mine when my drink exceeded $7(!) 💸 Image of the culprit below) Liv & Ellie: The coffee guy will be sad not to see you, doesn't he want sales? Maybe they should lower their prices so people come in more. The traffic vs check conundrum in a nutshell: A $5 drink x 5 days a week or A $7 drink x 2 days a week. $25 in weekly customer revenue vs $14. Traffic and frequency take a hit with price taking. Optimal pricing maintains traffic and frequency - and maximize sales (and customer satisfaction). 💡 There is only so much price you can take. All consumers all have a threshold they won't cross, call mine 7 🙃

Marketing isn’t just what you say. It’s mostly what you do.

A little something to think about during the weekend! For my CX customers… SAM WALTON (founder of Walmart) words of wisdom! “Believe me, customer never comes back!” Years ago, Sam Walton, founder of the world's largest retail chain, Wal-Mart, opened a training program for its employees, with much wisdom. When everyone was expecting a talk about sales and service, he started with these words: "I'm the guy who goes to a restaurant, sits at the table and waits patiently, while the waiter does everything but write down my order." I'm the guy who goes to a store and waits quietly, while the salesmen finish their personal conversations. I’m the guy who walks into a gas station and never uses his horn, but patiently waits for the employee to finish reading his newspaper. I'm the man who explains his desperate urgency for one piece, but doesn't complain that he only gets it after three weeks of waiting. I'm the guy that, when he enters a commercial establishment, seems to be asking for a favor, begging for a smile or just hoping to be noticed. You must be thinking I'm a quiet, patient, never troublesome type... Get fooled. Do you know who I am? I am the customer who never returns! I love seeing millions spent annually on all sorts of ads to get me back to your company. Because when I first went there, all they should have done was just a little, simple and inexpensive kindness: treat me with a little more courtesy. Theres only one boss: THE CUSTOMER. And he can fire everyone in the company from the president to the janitor, simply taking their money to spend elsewhere. " Want to be successful, have better customer service than anyone else.

This tweet went viral. But the reason isn’t as obvious as it appears. Yes, Chewy delivered great customer service. That deserves praise. But this tweet went viral because tons of OTHER people had similar experiences — so when they saw it, they replied and shared with their own experiences. Consider: 🎨 Chewy makes 1,000 oil paintings of its customers’ pets PER WEEK, and sends them out as gifts! 🌸 Chewy regularly sends flowers to people when their pets die. 😊 Chewy has a team of more than 2,500 trained customer service reps who respond quickly and kindly. Delighting one customer is great. But when you delight ALL your customers, they'll join together to shout your praises. THAT is how you go viral. If you liked this post, please share it with others and follow Jason Feifer for more. 🔥 Want to be more successful and satisfied? My newsletter, One Thing Better, helps you weekly: jasonfeifer.com/newsletter

THIS! This is why branding matters and going viral is more than putting up a video using the latest hit song. Going viral requires a connection between the content and the viewer. Connections are the foundation of brands. And when that connection is based on authenticity, people know and respond. That’s what separates you from competitors. That’s what moves consumers from spectators to ambassadors. It sounds like Chewy invests a lot of time and resources into learning about their consumers and building their brand, resulting in some cool marketing output. As the owner of 2 spoiled doggies, it sounds like this is a brand I need to investigate. And just like that, Chewy has probably acquired a new customer. This is a reminder of how powerful great branding and marketing can be! #AskAMarketer

Going viral won't grow your business, deep ❤️ love for your customers will. There is so much goodness in this post. 3 key takeaways: 1 - go beyond the profile to deep customer understanding 2 - go beyond "value add" to delight and surprise 3 - go beyond customer service, build a team around customer experience #hotelmarketing #hotels #hotelmanagement #obsessabouttheguest #guestexperience #customerexperience #brand

A CUSTOMER SERVICE ROLE MODEL Meet Anu, Kmart Castle Hill's epic customer greeter (and exit bag checker). This young man (I don't know his age, but he can't be older than 25) is quite exceptional. He has the most amazing customer greeting for every single customer that enters the store. A huge smile, an enthusiastic and authentically joyous welcome for every single customer, no matter what time of day. His consistency is remarkable, and he really is a huge asset to the store. Talk about living & embracing a customer-facing attitude - so many people & organisations can learn a lot from this young man. At more than twice his age, I really am delighted whenever I enter the store to see someone from the next generation demonstrating classic (maybe old-fashioned?) customer service. The problem is that it stands out so much - I rarely see it anywhere else! Your homework for today? Acknowledge someone for doing such a great job with customer service. Unfortunately it might be hard to identify, but it's worth doing. Anu was chuffed that I was writing a LinkedIn article about him! #customerservice