Taking care of a loyal customer in need

#364 in the Project was submitted by Jed Langdon from a comment on the post “What’s Your Purple Goldfish?”:

“Hi Kelly. I promised a Purple Goldfish and here it is, sorry it has taken so long!

My girlfriend’s father is a HUGE Pizza Express fan and I can now understand why. I’m not sure if you have Pizza Express in the US, but in the UK it is a large Pizza restaurant franchise with over 300 restaurants in the UK (it is called Pizza Marzano in some other countries). He visits his local Pizza Express on average about once a fortnight and is on first name terms with a lot of the staff there. When he walks in the chef usually begins to make his favourite dish, but what is even more impressive is that this is a starter that is no longer on the menu. This is a relationship that has been built up over time through him visiting the restaurant and not because he knows any of the staff, which is often the reason for a customer getting this treatment.

Anyway, a couple of weeks ago, my girlfriend’s father was admitted to hospital (fortunately he is going to be ok) and on hearing about him being in hospital the manager of his local Pizza Express took it upon herself to surprise him with his favourite pizza! She contacted the Pizza Express which was closest to the hospital and asked them to make and deliver the pizza to the hospital, free of charge. This is one of the kindest and most generous acts I have seen from a business, and nobody had expected this sort of thought and effort. Talk about making a customer feel valued, special and delivering service way above and beyond expectations!

Another great post Kelly, keep up the brilliant work!”

Marketing Lagniappe Takeaway: Go above and beyond to help a loyal customer in need.

Today’s Lagniappe (a little something extra) – The art of seduction . . . at Pizza Express they are teaching the staff a little something extra. Click the image below or here to see the video:

Lagniappe defined: A marketing lagniappe, i.e. purple goldfish,  is any time a business goes above and beyond to provide a ‘little something extra’. It’s that unexpected surprise that’s thrown in for good measure.

How do you stand out in the sea of sameness? How do you win repeat customers and influence word of mouth?  Are you Giving Little Unexpected Extras?

What’s Your GLUE?

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