Using The Ritz-Carlton’s Big Fish Strategy To Create Customers For Life

“People say legendary service costs millions and billions, it really doesn’t.”
Diana Oreck, Ritz-Carlton

A customer staying at the Ritz-Carlton in Boston had caught a giant tuna (200 lbs) on a fishing trip during his stay. He told the doorman that the fish was in the cooler in his car and asked if he could have some more ice for the cooler. Going above and beyond what was asked, the doorman asked the kitchen supervisor to clean the fish and fillet it into smaller pieces for the guest.

Then, the supervisor cleaned the cooler and arranged the pieces of tuna in fresh ice so that they would be ready to cook or freeze when the customer returned home.

What a way to take a simple request and turn it into a "wow" experience!

My first experience of the Ritz-Carlton’s didn’t involve fishing, but it did help me out of an embarrassing wardrobe malfunction…

I was staying at the Ritz-Carlton in Singapore where I'd been flown in to consult with the executive team of a fast-growing, privately owned company. After unpacking my bags, I realized with horror that I had forgotten to pack pantyhose. As wearing bare legs wasn’t an option (er, blinding white), I made a call to the concierge desk to ask for help. 

In less than two hours, there was a knock at my door, and to my astonishment, someone on the concierge team must have googled photos of me and had chosen the exact same textured, designer hose I typically wore – (very different from the regular store-bought kind). 

I was, of course, blown away and eternally grateful.

The Ritz-Carlton has fueled its growth, and legendary reputation for service through these small but highly meaningful actions. Creating an Extraordinary Experience for its clients is not then a nice after-thought, but a core function of its Marketing Engine (Step 6 of the Client Stampede Formula®).

So if your business depends on having happy customers for life, here are three key Ritz-Carlton lessons you can leverage starting today:

1.     Adopt A “Radar On – Antenna Up” Approach To Service, Empower Staff

Ritz-Carlton employees are trained to think outside the box to solve problems and own them until they are resolved. Instead of just taking a reactionary approach to problem-solving (eg waiting for a problem to help like my example above) – they work hard also to anticipate customer needs – as they did with the client who caught his giant fish. 

To achieve this, every employee, including housekeeping and janitorial, is empowered to spend up to $2,000.00 to resolve any customer concern without approval.

Action: How can you better empower your team to use their initiative and make a clients’ day?

2.     Share The WOW.

Every day, employees of every department in every Ritz-Carlton hotel around the world gather for a 15-minute staff meeting known as “the Lineup” to share the “wow stories.” These are true stories of employee heroics that go above and beyond conventional customer service.  The Lineup has become a core part of their culture and has proven to be a tremendous communication and training tool.

Action: How can you better incentivize and share your team’s WOWs?

3. Winning Through Brand Experience

The motto of the Ritz-Carlton is ”we are ladies and gentlemen, serving ladies and gentlemen.” 

Not only does this simple statement convey the behavior and appearance expectations for their staff,  but it embodies the entire brand experience for the organization. From the way a guest is greeted upon arrival to the way their bed is turned down at night – every single guest interaction is a reinforcement of their luxury positioning which again combined, creates an Extraordinary Experience (Step 7 of the Client Stampede Formula®).

Action: How well defined is your brand and your brand experience? How does your team put this into action? 

Fortunately, in practically every industry, it is not difficult to have your customer service stand out as the gold standard. Others’ low standards means there’s an opportunity for your business to shine like never before. Start today by using these three simple strategies from Ritz-Carlton to fuel your marketing growth and win customers for life. 

“In service, don’t sweat the small stuff does not apply.” - Diana Oreck