Lunch with Yoda - Master of Customer Experience
John Taylor is the grand master among a new breed of marketers.
A short while ago, I wrote a post criticizing Sprint/Nextel for their abysmal failure to even be civil in their face-to-face interactions with customers. John is the polar opposite. He is the engineer of a near flawless customer experience designed to delight just about the most demanding consumer that the world has to offer – rich, executive golfers.
He’s an artist, a choreographer, a director, a gracious host, and a savvy business man. Every business needs a John Taylor.
We had lunch last week in the kingdom that he has created in Scottsdale, Arizona. Here’s his story – and three of the lessons that I walked away with…
About five years ago, John and two partners set out to create the country’s finest club for golfers. NOT a high-end country club as John will quickly point out… Those aim to please everyone – and in doing so, truly satisfy no one.
Paraphrasing John, country clubs offer swimming, tennis, fitness, golf, dining, and other activities for people of all ages. Some manage to do a nice job of catering to the diverse interests of their clients. Others are mediocre.
To be spectacular, you must focus – narrow your offering and narrow your audience.
John and his partners did just this. They opened a world class golf club. No swimming. No tennis. No health club. Just five-star golf wrapped in an unforgettable experiential package.
Price of admission: $175,000
Recurring annual cost for members: whatever it takes to fund a flawless experience.
That’s right. Sure, you pay as you go for meals, golf instruction, etc. But at the end of the year any operating deficit that may have been incurred is simply divided evenly across the membership.
Where most of us would have stopped narrowing our target audience for fear of reducing our prospect universe too drastically, they went a step further. This isn’t a place for just any wealthy person who loves golf. It is specifically designed for the business executive golfer. 250 of them to be exact. That’s it – along with 100 or so spots for members who live out of town (more than 150 miles away).
With any more than 250 local members, John couldn’t say with confidence that the experience would be flawless. Someone might have to wait for something – and John isn’t in the business of making members and their guests wait.
By defining their audience this narrowly, they have been able to achieve near perfection in the delivery of their service.
LAW #1 OF CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE: DIVERSITY IS DANGEROUS.
There is an inverse relationship between audience diversity and the perfection of the customer experience.
To deliver a consistently flawless experience, your audience must be nearly homogenous – at least in the context of their expectations of you. Some members may like opera. Others prefer a night at the movies. This diversity doesn’t matter. When they enter the palace gates, they all share a common vision and expectation of a perfect, executive golfing experience.
As we dined, I asked John, “once you’ve created an experience like this one, do you find yourself constantly struggling simply to maintain the perfection – trying not to change a thing – or do you find that you are constantly recalibrating, tweaking, adjusting…?”
As you might expect, he lives a life of continual assessment, refinement and recalibration. He replied, “since we’ve been sitting here (having lunch), I’ve noticed six things that need to be changed. You may not have noticed, but there’s a fly in here.”
From somewhere in the cavernous hall, indeed there lit a single, very unfortunate fly on our table.
“That fly has been bothering the hell out of me.”
LAW #2 OF CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE: RELENTLESSLY EVALUATE AND REFINE.
It can never be truly perfect for everyone all of the time. The master simply reduces the delta (between reality and true perfection) to the nearly imperceptible – and holds it there through relentless evaluation and refinement.
As I watched a few cherished members enjoy their club that afternoon around lunchtime, I couldn’t help but notice the fluidity of their experience. Members moved about as though they were at home. The staff had clearly committed not only their names, but their personal preferences to memory, and for a fleeting moment one might forget that food and drink – even here – come at a price.
One might forget because no one signs for anything. As members and their guests consume, the member’s bill is being quietly and invisibly tabulated – never to be seen until (I assume) the end of the month.
After lunch, we took a stroll across the cushy green carpet that members have come to know as a fairway. We arrived at the state-of-the-art golf training facility. Oddly, I was greeted at this outpost with warm familiarity by attendants I had yet to meet.
Here I noticed one of what I’m sure are many of John’s tools of the trade. A Secret Service-like communication device can be found in the ear of most every staffer. As I spoke with one of these agents, I learned that he and his comrades were constantly kept abreast of everyone who was “on property” at any given moment along with any special needs that they may have during this visit.
LAW #3 OF CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE: CHEAT.
Mere mortals can’t deliver a perfect experience without cheating – so cheat.
Even with only 250 members, the multitude of names, faces, and preferences is too great to master unaided by technology. There’s no shame in this – unless you don’t own the technology.
I could go on… will in future posts. Coming into an experience with VERY high expectations, rarely do you leave having had your expectations exceeded. Leaving this paradise, mine were exceeded.
So how is John from a business perspective? I’ll offer a few stats:
Memberships – SOLD OUT. There are a few open spots if you live more than 150 miles away. Otherwise, welcome to the waiting list.
Not bad.
Total dollars spent on advertising since inception: $0
The experience IS the marketing plan. And it worked. Way to go John!
customer experience, Referral Marketing, word of mouth
