Don’t Just Get Leads— Get Excited Customers

There’s a strange human phenomena that has puzzled scientists for years. Why do so many people trust their friends instead of the experts? You’ve probably seen it in action, even with something simple. Maybe you’ve done it yourself. 

Let’s say Jane is trying to decide whether or not to go see a movie. The film is hailed by critics—experts in narrative and dramatic interpretation who’ve spent years honing their craft and have critiqued literally thousands of movies. Yet when making the decision to view the film, Jane asks her friend, Tom, who says the movie is terrible. 

 Well, that’s one ticket that likely won’t be purchased.

The reason for such a reliance on friends over the experts really comes down to this: people believe their friends and family care about them and have their best interests at heart. It’s not that Jane doesn’t believe the critic knows what he or she is talking about; it’s just that Jane doesn’t know the critic. To her, the critic is a faceless entity who, unlike Tom, doesn’t know her or care what she likes or doesn’t.

The same is true when potential customers are choosing from different service providers. Yes, ads and websites are great, but they’re also impersonal. What if Tom had given the movie an enthusiastic thumbs-up? Jane might have rushed off to see it, and the actors, producers and studio heads could have added a little more to their box office take. That’s why it’s so important to create not just customers, but fans who’ll sing your praises. This word-of-mouth is often more effective than traditional advertising and better yet: it’s advertising you don’t have to pay for. 

A great example of this phenomenon in action is the hospitality industry. Word of mouth and peer reviews count for a lot in this line of work.  It’s well worth it for travel agents, hotels and resorts to go the extra mile, because they’re not just doing business for today. They’re ‘wowing’ their customers now, to set themselves up for future business.

There are all sorts of ways you can ‘wow’ your customers, but most of them boil down to paying attention to the little things and putting in the extra work to make an ordinary transaction special. Impress your customers by making sure you do what you say you’re going to do and by following up with them after the initial sale. Give them more than they expected and find ways to offer them extras they didn’t know they needed. 

Wowing your customers today can mean a sale tomorrow. It’s the difference between being a critic and a trusted friend and can make your business a movie worth seeing.