Chocolates on the Pillow Aren't Enough: Reinventing the Customer Experience

Jonathan Tisch's "Chocolates On The Pillow Are Not Enough" is a must read for anyone who is in the business of serving people - whether in the private, the non-profit, or the public sectors. (I have extrapolated the application of Tisch's ideas to organizations that are not commercial enterprises). Tisch translates his years of experience and observation as a hotelier to address both the why and the how of "meeting a challenge that never ends." It is the challenge of creating deeper, richer, more satisfying connections to your organization in today's complex, rapidly changing world. While you can get closure on a number of key management tasks, you can never declare "mission accomplished" when connecting with customers,employees, or donors. Like other relationships in life, a relationship with any stakeholder is a long-lasting, evolving, living entity. Themes and practices in "Chocolates" are drawn from some of the world's smartest and most successful organizations including In-N-Out Burger, McDonalds, Dell, Sephora, Commerce Bank (NJ), Virgin Healthcare, Revolution On-line (Steve Case), Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Target, E-Z Pass, 311 phone exchange, Harley Davidson, and EBay. Any reader is bound to find one, two, or three exciting ideas that can be applied immediately in his/her own organization. Tisch adds "Big Aha's" at the end of each chapter summarizing the key thoughts/actions making the book a useful reference. Tisch provides the hotelier's secret (people remember the experience not the attributes), and answers to the question "What happened to my customers?"(in world beset by discord, inequality, hyper-partisan politics, and the threat of terror). He helps us to re-imagine the customer experience and focuses our attention on creating customers who are happy to buy. A most valuable part of the book for all will be the sections on the "The Art of Welcome." This is something most companies (and in particular, non-profits) do not give attention to, whether with customers, new employees, or suppliers. Tisch warns us to pay attention to the decompression zone, where people enter, and THEIR threshold resistance. We must learn to understand what makes people feel welcome, comfortable and relaxed. If we do, they want to buy (the customer), or make a significant contribution (the new employee, supplier, or donor). "Chocolates" highlights why the art of the welcome is crucial to all organizations. And Tisch chides us to give our best, and then, a little bit more.

The book has two main sections - a problem/solution statement and a (much longer) section on "Reimagining the Customer Experience". Each chapter has a "Big Ahas" section at the end to summarize the critical points Jonathan is trying to make and the book is generally well-written and an easy read. It is a little hotel- or hospitality-industry centric but not more than you would expect given his background. The first section lays out why the authors think that customers are more fickle and harder to please than in the past. Arguing that there is no way to turn back the clock, they talk about "getting back to basics" and creating stronger, longer-lasting ties to customers. He quotes the CEO of Proctor and Gamble "People remember experiences. They don't remember [product] attributes." The book talks about engineering the total customer experience as the solution, starting by focusing on the totality of the customers experience across every touchpoint. Among his solution ideas are looking for ways to give your customers both simplicity and flexibility, thinking about all the touchpoints your customers have, linking with customers directly even if you are not selling directly and that customers are a moving target. The second part has a series of chapters, most of which had some great points. These range from discussion of the power of personalization and customization in making customers feel in control and happy to buy, to the challenges of providing security. He is a big proponent of transparency, arguing that what one customers knows all will soon know and that you can get real benefits out of being more transparent. He argues that even big organizations can think small in terms of welcoming customers that you should build your future with existing customers. All in all a good and worthwhile read. You might want to consider The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business Is Selling Less of More also.

I got off to a slow start reading this book, stopping and restarting several times, but eventually once about 25% through the book it drew me in with its superb examples. It's made me rethink a couple things about my business as well! This book may be frustrating for people in any kind of customer service at companies where they cannot improve the customer experience because of "rules" and mindset, but may encourage them to leave and go somewhere they'll be appreciated more. For anyone in a position of any authority at an organization with lots of customers, especially less than very happy customers, this book is a great and insightful read.

Tisch is passionate about how to transform "customer service" which tends to be a series of isolated deliverables (answering the phone quickly, chocolates on the pillow...) into a much more rounded, holistic concept called Customer Experience. He is also a lively, entertaining raconteur who knows a great story and how to pepper it with apt case studies and examples. So this makes a great read. What I especially like here is the major focus on the hospitality industry - not because I work in this sector, (I'm a market researcher who investigates customer relationships for a broad range of clients,) but because hospitality is the perfect metaphor for anyone: whether they're in banking or building supplies. When they read this; even the accountants will "get it" when it comes to that connection between the customers' experience and the bottom-line realities that come when you win to-die-for loyalty and a raving fan-base of passionate customers. This is a good value read that charges you up. Tisch does a good job here.

I read this book cover-to-cover in one sitting and found a lot of helpful information and fun examples. I have a small business and it's so easy to get too caught up in selling and marketing. What really brings customers back to embrace your brand is the whole experience. The book has examples of all kinds of companies and how they find creative ways of making their customer feel special--that's what good business is all about. I learned a lot from this book. Most importantly: when the customer has a great experience, your business will take off and it's a win-win situation for everybody. If the customer just feels sold to, they'll probably go to the other guy.