Best-Practices in Customer-Experience Leadership: Voices From the Top

In this article, three key speakers at this week's annual Customer Experience Leadership conference, each with a distinct point-of-view on how to create a customer-centric culture, preview their upcoming talks and share best-practices.

How to 'Hug' Your Customers
by Jack Mitchell

Late one evening, Debbie, a veteran sales associate at our flagship luxury retail store Mitchells, received a call from a panicked customer. He had to be on a flight the next morning to talk to Swiss bankers about customer service, but he had nothing appropriate to wear for the sudden meeting. Debbie told him not to worry and to come down to the store.

At Mitchells, there is a near-immaculate record of customers' prior preferences, size, frame measurements, and purchase history stored in a database. Before the panicked customer arrived, Debbie pulled out basic suits, shoes, ties, and a blue blazer—all based on his profile. She handed him a cappuccino (which she knew he preferred over regular coffee) as he walked in.

The next day, the customer bragged about Mitchells to the Swiss bankers during his speech on impeccable customer service. As he looked inside the lapel of his blue blazer, he discovered a card that Debbie had placed inside. To his surprise, it read, "Happy Birthday."

Over a decade ago, I began to use the word "hugging" to describe a culture of embracing the customer. "Hugging" entails any act that embraces or connects with the customer in a human way—much like Debbie's surprise birthday card.

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