Earl’s Pearls

My mantra, expressed decades before the term “customer experience” was coined, sounded like this: “If we provide our customers with a level of service that exceeds their wildest expectations, we will never lose one of those customers to a competitor’s price.” That was true then, remains so today, and will be true as far in…

Whatever it is that drives you, being service oriented is a mind-set, a whatever it takes, can do attitude. This is your CHOICE, but it takes intention. “Yes, I can do that.” “Whatever it takes.” “I’ll make it happen.” When your customers hear these words, they trust that you are an advocate for them. They…

A new vendor partner I was onboarding recently asked what my customers expect of me and my partners. I replied….. My customers have come to expect: I will treat them like they’re the only client I have. I will be tenacious when it comes to their needs and best interests. I will be proactive and…

Many companies today consider customer experience to be customer service with some refinement. Some bling! But in concept and practice, they are entirely different. They relate only in this way. Customer service kicks in when customer experience fails. Customer Service is what you provide before and after the sale, usually focusing on communication or solving…

An exceptional customer experience won’t be delivered if your employee experience is a train wreck.

Does any relationship start with complete trust? Of course not. It can take years to build a customer’s trust. But be aware, it can take just minutes to lose it!

A referral is the best advertising and great way to be recognized for providing an exceptional customer experience.  But if you want to maximize profits, here is why getting a referral is so much more than recognition.  A referral increases your revenue while lowering your Sales, General, and Administrative expenses (SG&A). Increased profitability!  Have you…

In 2014, we chose SCAD, The Savannah College of Art and Design, to establish an endowment to assist their high achieving students seeking Interior Design, Service Design, and Fashion Marketing and Management degrees. Our endowment has funded seven scholarships to five eligible SCAD students. Why SCAD? We wanted to make a difference in the lives…

HAPPY. NEW. YEAR. Three of the most often shared words entering January. With unbridled hopes, cautious optimism, and a mask, we have welcomed 2021.  That said, many of us, our friends, colleagues, and business partners have started the year facing major career changes and choices. In my industry, the pandemic, retail and restaurant closures, the…