I recently read an outstanding book called 'Delivering Happiness' written by Tony Hsieh, the CEO of Zappos of an online shoe retailer that went from zero to $1billion sales in just 8 years. This was no whiny, self-satisfied business guru telling us how clever he had been. No. This is a humble, human and inspiring guy who simply wants to share his absolute passion for building an alternative company culture that has become all encompassing.

The question to us all is clear - could we find a way to do it differently too? Are we so locked in the 'norms' of our sector that we can't see another way to do whatever it is that we do?

This is the first of three articles based on this book that look at the underlying parts of his story - custom service, company culture and 'being different'.

We are not trying to maximise each and every transaction. Instead, we're trying to build a lifelong relationship of each and every customer, one phone call at a time".

This is a very clear business philosophy and begs the question - 'what's yours?'.

For Zappos, this philosophy manifested itself in several ways ...

1. They view the costs of customer service as a marketing investment and not an expense. For example, they run their customer service team - and their warehouse - 24/7. This is not the most cost effective approach but it does offer the best customer service.
2. They automatically offer free shipping in both directions to help customers try as many shoes as they like at zero risk. They offer a 365 day guarantee to remove any pressure to decide. They often surprise loyal customers with overnight shipping upgrades. Everything is about the 'WOW!'.
3. They work on the basis that most customers call them at least once in a lifetime, so they aim to make maximum impact in that time. For example, they don't measure call times and they don't automatically up-sell on a call. If the specific shoes needed are not available, they will research up to 3 competitors for the customer. Service agents are totally empowered to do whatever is necessary to make the customer go 'WOW!!!'.
4. Their setup means that a late-night shopper has their order immediately picked by the 24/7 warehouse, packed off to the UPS hub that's close by and, along with a surprise shipping upgrade, the customer will receive their order over breakfast the next day. Big style 'WOW!'.

So, no delays in receiving your order, no being held in a call queue, no being fobbed off on the phone, no cost to returning unwanted items, no up-selling, no frustration. Goodness - does that sound like your Internet shopping experience? Of course the 'realists' will list the many operational issues in this approach, the unnecessary costs, the industry norms, the issues in handling customer service teams and the need to closely 'manage' their output.

Well reader, you decide. This is a seriously profitable company with an unerringly loyal customer base. I challenge you to consider who's got it more right and what lessons can you take away about the 'WOWs' you offer your customers?

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