By Kyle Caldwell - www.Neighborinneed.org

The guy who fixes my appliances here in Atlanta is named Jerry. He is a marketing genius. I doubt he is aware of this, however.

Jerry is a quiet and unassuming man. He starts in the early morning and has been at my house fixing the stupid handle of my refrigerator at 8 o’clock at night. Jerry’s appliance repair business is slammed every single day. If you ask anyone in my neighborhood who to call, all you hear is “Jerry”. I can only imagine that, despite his meek demeanor and utter lack of flashiness, Jerry is a millionaire.

Jerry spends exactly zero dollars on marketing. He wears a uniform similar to that of the Maytag repairman, complete with thick work boots and a pocket protector. His shirt says, “Jerry”. Other than that, he does not even shell out for a sign on his truck that says, “Appliance Repair”.

Why waste the money? Jerry advertises with customer service. Jerry wins with graciousness. He is delightful. “Mr. Caldwell”, he said on another visit, “I can flush your water lines if you want me to, but really, I think if you just turn the temperature up in the unit two degrees, the lines won’t freeze, and your water will work tomorrow. Call me if I’m wrong, but that should do it.” I am gasping on the inside. Jerry is standing in my kitchen at 7:30 at night telling me NOT to spend any money with him. I even offer a meager service fee out of pure guilt and he says, “No, thank you. I am glad to help. See you next time.” He packs and leaves.

Is that marketing? Oh, yes. And you have the same opportunity with every customer, every day.
The magic word here is “delight”. Notice the magic word is not “satisfy”. The distinction between the two words is huge – and it’s what a lot of Atlanta companies miss entirely. How many offer “100% Guarantees” for your ‘delightedness’ ? Uh, none.

Delight happens with you surprise someone in a good way. But, you have to be available to the opportunity to create an unexpected moment that makes the customer grin. Delight is so not the same as satisfaction. It’s another universe completely. It’s (practically) free advertising for your business that is as sticky and indelible as anything you could ever buy on Atlanta Radio, TV or Newspaper. It’s better than Google. You can’t buy it at all. You have to live it.

The heating and air guy…. “Mr. Caldwell, I saw that your filter was dirty when I was repairing that pilot light, so I swapped it out for you – and I left a couple of more for you in the basement, so you won’t have to remember to run to the store to get them. No charge.” Grin.

The Plumber… “Mr. Caldwell, I know you called about the water heater, but I a saw the valve on the line was rusty, and I had an extra, so I switched it out for you. No charge. We appreciate your business.” Grin.

The Shoe Store Cashier – “I noticed your little boy’s laces were worn out, so I threw another pair in the bag for you. That’s on me. Thanks for coming in.” Awesome. Delightfully awesome.
You spend a lot of time training your people in customer service. But do you ever talk about delighting your customers? Do you have a budget for delight? Are your techs, reps, cashiers and managers empowered to do something delightful? Would they be able to spot the chance to delight a customer when they saw one? IS DELIGHT A PART OF YOUR CULTURE?
If not, you are missing out on the best repeat and referral generating advertising source available.

Delighted customers call you first every time, you own a permanent space in their minds and they cannot wait to refer you to anyone and everyone. Delighted people don’t haggle or shop your bid to your competition. Delighted people are glad to pay their bill.

Building a culture of delight in your business will be the best advertising money can’t buy.