The Tricky Task of Building and Retaining Loyalty
I’ve been thinking a lot about making people feel seen and heard. It comes down to the importance of building loyalty to a brand and to you. You are the embodiment of your personal brand and your company's brand. When I think about brands I am loyal to, they are few and far between. I drive further to Trader Joe's, even though there is another grocery store closer. TJ’s has wisely built its brand on private-labeling its products. It was a risk that paid off. The quality is good, the products are unique, the prices are competitive, and they make it fun. I’m in.
It’s not that hard to build loyalty. It’s harder to keep it.
I recently sought out a new dentist. I read a ton of reviews on this practice, and they were all great. They were convenient, and they take my insurance. So, when I went in for the first time, I noticed how happy and friendly everyone who worked there seemed to be. It is a single dentist practice with a large support staff.
I have gone to large practices with multiple dentists in the past, which came across as very impersonal, and they were constantly trying to upsell me on something I didn’t need. I would see different dentists each time and never felt a connection with any of them.
On my first visit to the new dentist, they took a picture of me for the file. I thought it was weird at the time, but on my second visit, I understood why.
The minute I walked in the door, the woman at the front desk stood up and said ‘Hi Teresa!’ She didn’t actually remember me, of course, but she used the appointment time and my photo to identify me. She offered me water from their fridge in the lobby and said I would be called back shortly. Then another woman came back to her desk at the front and said, ‘Hi Teresa, it’s nice to see you.’ Such small, but effective, gestures were already building my loyalty to this practice.
Now, if I didn’t like the dentist or the office was dirty, no amount of pleasantry could overcome that. So when we attempt to create a memorable customer experience and loyalty, we have a lot of boxes to check, and sometimes we can’t control all of them.
If the real estate side of the transaction goes perfectly, but the mortgage process goes sideways, we can only do so much. But being an advocate and helping facilitate through the challenges can go a long way. The last thing we want is to be dragged down by someone else’s poor service.
On the opposite end of the spectrum.
Last week, we decided to try a new restaurant in the area. My 26-year-old daughter was down from LA, and some of our friends also joined us. The space was beautiful, and the menu looked good, but it was also expensive. The prices were not shown on the website, so we would have likely skipped it if we had known. I’m ok with expensive as long as the food is fantastic, portions are appropriate, and service is stellar.
This place lacks the vibe of a high-end fine dining experience. I kept talking myself out of dishes as I read the menu because of the price. Do we really need to pay $48 for half of a baked chicken with no sides? That’s high even for California prices. Not exactly an elevated dish. An 8-oz. filet mignon (no sides) for $62? I’m happy to pay the price for something that I feel I can’t make easily at home.
We had a lovely waitress, or so it seemed. She did a good job of explaining the menu and some of the dishes. But I noticed she was pointing out the most expensive items on the menu. Overall, I would rate the service as average. I shouldn’t have to ask for a water refill.
After we left, it was a collective decision that the prices didn’t justify the experience. And then my daughter spoke up. She said, “That server never looked me in the eye. Even when she was taking my order, it felt dismissive.” It dawned on me that the server was pandering to the likely people to pay the bill and give her a tip. She knew my daughter wasn’t that person—fatal flaw. Had I known that at the restaurant, I might have confronted her about it, and it certainly would have affected her tip. I am sure the owner of the restaurant would be horrified, or maybe that is part of their training. They missed the mark all the way around.
I guess it all comes down to what makes a great experience.
It’s a tricky question to answer because some people may feel that an attempt to create a memorable experience is too invasive. That’s why having an open dialogue at the start of the relationship and throughout can keep everyone on the same page about expectations. Just knowing that we are a reliable resource is sometimes enough.
While I understand that serving food and providing dental services are much different from buying or selling a home during a relocation, there are lessons to be learned. It all comes down to emotional intelligence and understanding what makes people feel valued and want to continue the relationship even after the close of escrow.
What will make them recommend us to others or use us again? A Zillow survey shows that the percentage of sellers who use the same agent again has fallen from 15% in 2022 to 8% in 2024. Not a great trend. But that is on the agent. That is why we, as relocation professionals, need to take the management of the relationship with our transferees in-house. It doesn’t take much to make people feel special.
We must stop with the one-size-fits-all mentality. Taking a minute to zero in on the pain points and fears of our customers allows us to build trust and create a personalized experience that they will remember long after the move. A move is a significant life event. We are the experts, and our purpose is to guide them through a very stressful process.
“Get closer than ever to your customers. So close that you tell them what they need well before they realize it themselves.” ~Steve Jobs, founder of Apple
