This past holiday season, my husband and I decided to take our 2 college-aged daughters and our 2 high-school-aged sons on a family trip in lieu of Christmas presents. After searching online for great holiday destinations, my husband and I decided on Quebec City, Canada. We thought a trip with experiences would have a longer lasting impression on them and would make great family memories. Lovely memories were accomplished along with so much more ~ a lesson from the heart.

It's no wonder that I own a company that evaluates service performance as one of our main jobs. Service delivery has always held my interest. I am simply unable to have a service encounter without completing my mental check list of, "Did right, and/or did wrong" evaluation. Here is a great quote by Bill Gates that all businesses should have their eye on and thrive on: 

In the hospitality industry "wow factor" is a phrase not only used, but something the industry strives to achieve in the service they provide. There is a short list of companies that are noted and revered for consistently achieving this service level. The challenge that we see is executing and delivering the "wow factor" is often misunderstood.

Here's what I mean, as a consumer, we expect a certain level of good, consistent service and anything above this is a bonus. This isn't close to the level of service we are talking about regarding "wow." Studies show that 65% of customers that are "satisfied" will end up taking their business somewhere else for a better offer (better service). Customers are not "wowed" by expected service, but rather by the unexpected service provided that met a need they didn't even know they had. This is what separates the "good" from the "great."

In our ProSo world, we live and breathe improving customer experiences.  It's the foundation of our business, supports every effort, and is at the core of every service we provide.  Truth be told- it's a bit of a thorn in our sides because we can't just be a "normal" customer in our day-to-day lives.  Every time we are the customer (and not on the ProSo clock), we over analyze and evaluate the experience.  We constantly think of what was done right, what could be done better, and more. This means our team is the perfect resource for creating a customer loyalty cheat sheet.  So here I present to you what a company can do to sell us and keep us coming back for more...

A good hockey player plays where the puck is.  A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be.

-Wayne Gretzky

The start of a new year is a great time to think about looking ahead.  This usually means making fresh goals, which is certainly something we've talked about in the past.  But it can also mean thinking about the concept of anticipation.  Being proactive.  Seeing the future.  However you care to think about it, it's all about using what you already know to predict what will happen next.