Hug Your Customers: The Proven Way to Personalize Sales and Achieve Astounding Results

This book allows the reader to have insight into the deeper understanding of how you are to treat each and every person as a human.

I have read over 50 books on Customer Service. This is by far the best of all of them. It goes into great detail on what things you need to do, not just the fact that you need to do them. I have sent them two emails, and they responded in less than a day-That's better than 90% of the companies out there...If you are going to read a book this year, this should be the one. It is insperational, and motivational for anyone dealing with the public, even Governmental agencies could learn a thing or two, or three or...

In a world where "that's not my problem" and "we have our policies" too often reign, from large companies and small ones both, this book is sheer delight. I read this book while smarting from being treated as if having no water in our house for several days were not an emergency. The well company came on a Friday, appeared to have fixed the well and left. Twenty minutes later, the problem came back. Had they subscribed to the Jack Mitchell philosophy, the service guys would have come back later that day, or on Saturday so that we wouldn't have been left without water for the weekend. But nope, their weekends are more important than customers. When he finally called me back, I even asked the owner if he could give me a beeper or cellphone number so that I could let him know if the next service call also didn't solve the problem. He refused. Now compare this with the Jack Mitchell philosophy, which is that an emergency is whatever the customer defines as an emergency, and that the customer counts. And the customer counts not because this creates a fatter bottom line (which it does), but because people matter. That's the part that put tears in my eyes. His sincerity on this point came through loud and clear. The book rates a "5" both on emotional and logical grounds. I read tons of business books every year, and this one truly stands out.

"Hug Your Customers: The Proven Way To Personalize Sales And Achieve Astounding Results" by Jack Mitchell is a great book for entrepreneurs who operate service businesses and, especially, for business owners who operate retail operations.Jack Mitchell is co-owner and CEO of Mitchells/Richards, the upper-end clothing retailer. Today, Mitchells/Richards sells $65 million in apparel annually. Mitchells/Richards dresses many Fortune 500 executives. However, the store began as a modest family business, started by Jack's dad in 1958.Mitchell writes: "When the store opened, there were a few dozen shirts, some socks, a couple of sweaters, and a few ties. Plus, exactly three Doncaster suits, the brand Dad created for the store, priced at $65 apiece. A size 40 banker's stripe. A 42 navy blue. And a 42 charcoal gray.... Nowadays we stock over three thousand suits-for men and women."Mitchell credits his family store's success to making the store a home, where customers feel welcome. Mitchell says his parents: "...understood that customers wanted five things more than they wanted a great location or enormous inventory:1. A friendly greeting2. Personal interest3. A business that makes them feel special4. A 'no problem' attitude5. Forward thinking"Mitchell says that to be successful in the service industry, you must build a customer centric organization-one that hugs the customer. It's not enough to have satisfied customers. You need extremely satisfied customers.Mitchell writes: "When you have strong relationships, customers will do more of their buying from you. They'll refer other customers. They'll communicate with you better and tell you what they like and what they don't like, in turn making your business more efficient and effective."Mitchell points out that hugging is difficult to quantify, and many companies ignore customer satisfaction and customer profiling altogether. While inventory is recorded on the balance sheet, Mitchell tells us that a company's greatest asset-repeat customers-doesn't appear on any financial statements.Further, while companies invest significant amounts in computer systems, they rarely develop computer systems that support a hugging culture.Mitchell writes: "What's amazing is that although personal relationships are absolutely crucial to any company's success, they are rarely tracked by any system. Hotels don't know who likes queen-sized beds and who wants extra pillows. Airlines don't know who prefers aisle seats and who prefers the window."Mitchell is a big fan of profiling customers to provide more personal service. He likes his sales associates to know which customers like M & M's and what nicknames they prefer.With over 115,000 customers, knowing personal information about each customer is nearly impossible without a database to support this information. When a customer visits Mitchells/Richards, the customer's sales associate can pull up the customer information easily allowing the associate to recall information ab

Jack Mitchell, CEO of Mitchells/Richards, runs a high-end clothing store in a highly competitive market. Yet when other retailers were speaking of the difficulties of the apparel market and referring to it as "Apparel's Black-Hole" his business was not only surviving, but thriving. What made it unique? How has Mitchells/Richards continued to develop customer loyalty and sales no matter what the market? Why would a customer come to a store and pay more for a suit than they would have to pay elsewhere? The reason is simple, they make their customers feel important. Jack Mitchell shares the secret to his success and what he expects of all employees of Mitchells/Richards in his book "Hug Your Customers". Many businesses say that the customer is always right, or the customer is king, but Jack Mitchell shares how he shows the customer they are special. It is one of the very few books that define the specifics of a customer relationship philosophy instead of just speaking generically about customer satisfaction. He also points out how he "hugs" his employees so they feel important and the effect this has on moral, customers, and overall business success. Filled with practical advice and specific examples, "Hug Your Customers" should be required reading for anyone going into business.

Once again, there's not a lot that's terribly new here but the basic concept of customer service cannot be overstressed: treat people as you would like to be treated yourself. I own a high-end retail establishment on Madison Avenue in New York City. I had become so fed up hearing my employees complain about the mega-stores and mega-brands taking away our business that I had them read this book and we discussed it at a staff meeting. It made a huge difference, and the customers have definitely noticed. If you like this one, then I would also recommend the new book about a small coffee business called "Beans." The same tenets apply.