Customer Experience is the Killer App

6/12/2024 • Scott Love

This may seem like a bit of a tangent for a technology company, but it’s a topic every leadership team should consider. I was recently reminded that customer experience is a crucial differentiator for any business.

Allow me to share a bit of a personal experience.

While I’m not working with clients and managing Blue Raven, I love to garden. Here in Denver, we have fair-sized lot (for living in a city) and enjoy our backyard quite a bit during the summer.

Given that life is busy, I’ve hired a landscaping company - Lifescape - to help with maintenance, expertise, and an extra pair of hands or equipment when I need it. I want to stress that I have no connection with the company other than being a customer.

I’ve gone through my share of landscaping companies. I’ve tried the “guy and a truck / mow-and-blow” option but didn’t get the expertise I needed.

I then worked with a company (whose name I won’t share) that left a hose connected during the winter, froze a spigot, and flooded my basement. Their work had been “fine” up to that point. Mistakes happen, and I’ve made lots myself, but it was their response that tipped the balance: their owner argued that the pipe was inside the house and not their responsibility. Insurance companies ironed things out for us both, but I will never forget how defensive and unapologetic the person was.

Finally, I landed on Lifescape.

There’s a reason I contacted them: their branding. Their trucks are clean, their logo prominent, and they appear professional. Customer experience starts with first impressions.

But other companies have fine logos and websites too. Delivering on expectations is where things get different.

They make sure there’s a “Garden Manager” assigned to each client, whose job it is to make sure plans get made, communication is clear, and that quality is reviewed. They do what they say they will, when they say, and manage things when surprises occur.

While the other companies with which I worked had a point of contact, the role was not as clearly spelled out as with Lifescape. I can text, email, or call and my Garden Manager will take care of it. A broken sprinkler head gets fixed within hours, and the water shut off remotely. Those pesky weeds on the North plant bed get extra attention. My son’s toys get thoughtfully put back into their bin.

I’m pretty sure Garden Managers at the company are trained to look for “customer experience” opportunities… mine has shared a few extra plants with me that would otherwise have gone to waste and done other small favors. I’ve worked with three Garden Managers thus far, and each has delivered similar service.

All that is great and would be plenty to leave me a satisfied customer, but one last item prompted me to share this post: I referred the company to my elderly father. He struggles with hearing and with comprehending all the complex ins-and-outs of modern life. The folks at Lifescape have been patient, communicative, and sensitive to his needs.

I’ve attended my share of marketing and leadership talks that advocate what a brand should be, getting clear on vision, writing well-crafted mission statements, and focusing on unique selling points. If I were the marketing person at a landscaping company, I’ll admit, I’d be stymied. Let’s be candid… “we mow grass” is tough to differentiate, and a mission statement of “we change lives by mowing grass” is a stretch.

I think the leaders of Lifescape know something the rest of us need to remember. In today’s world, awash with impersonal chat bots, infuriating phone trees, and automated email, delivering consistently great service, and baking it into your operations, is really what will make a business stand out.

Imagine if your IT vendors and consultants worked that same way.

If you need a landscaping company in Denver, look them up and tell them Scott sent you.