It’s Not What You Say – It’s How They Feel

A friend forwarded me an email this morning that told of an interview Oprah had in April with Maya Angelou.  It was Maya’s 70+ birthday and Oprah asked her what she thought of growing older.  She said lots of thought provoking, inspirational stuff as Maya often does but the one quote that really struck me was this one:

‘I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.’

How true is that?  Will customers remember the 20% discount we gave them or the fact that we were open in the evenings?  Will they remember that we offered them coffee or used their name? 

No, but it is all of those little details that add up when the customer thinks back on how the experience MADE THEM FEEL.

“Did you like shopping at the XYZ Store?” we might ask them.

“Oh yes, it was a great experience.”

“What made it so great?”

“I’m not sure, but I just felt good about my purchase.”

How do you make your customers feel?  When they leave your store do they feel like they were valued? 

Feelings – emotions – don’t come from the deal of the month but rather from the relationships we’ve built, the trust we garnered and the time spent with each customer.

So I just wonder how your customers feel today.