Guy Kawasaki, recently wrote a great post about a book titled The Apple Experience. There is much that nonprofits can learn from one of the best retail environments out there.
Here is a quick summary of his points.
- Stop selling stuff – “Selling stuff” isn’t very inspiring, instead focus on how you can…
- Enrich lives – Focus on this and magical things happen
- Hire for smiles – People skills over technical skills
- Celebrate diversity – Hire people that reflect the diversity of your audience
- Unleash inner genius – Take the time to teach people something they never knew they could do and you’ll be rewarded with loyalty
- Empower employees – Place emphasis on a great customer experience, even if it takes time)
- Sell the benefit – Give people a glimpse of how it will improve life rather than touting “speeds and feeds”)
- Follow the steps of service – Warm custom greeting, probe politely, present solution, listen for unresolved issues, fond farewell & invitation to return
- Create multi sensory experience – Allow people to see, touch, and play with your product or service)
- Appeal to the [decision making] brain – Create clean, open and uncluttered environments
Most nonprofits aren’t focused on selling merchandise, but how could you apply these insights to improve the experiences of those you serve?