P R A I S E F O R S E R V I C E M A G I C “Zemke and Bell reveal the secret for making enchantment a tool for customer loyalty.” —Ken Blanchard, Coauthor of The One Minute Manager and Whale Done!™ “Service Magic is a must-read for anyone interested in changing their customers’ experience from ho-hum to Wow!” —James Mapes, Author of Quantum Leap Thinking “Two thumbs way up for Service Magic.It unveils the secrets to customer loyalty in a way that is both poignant and practical.” —Bob Gault, President and COO of Universal Orlando “Service Magic takes service excellence to the next level, illustrating ex- actly how to achieve the Wow Factor. The three Ps of Place, Process, and Performance all have to be present to deliver Service Magic.” —Judith S. Corson, Cofounder and Former President of Custom Research Inc. “A fun and valuable book to read if you are interested in service, in magic, or in both.” —Dr. Leonard L. Berry, Author of Discovering the Soul of Service “Service Magic will be the playbook used by organizations that want to provide superior customer service. It’s a must-read!” —Paul Eckert, President and COO of United Financial Services Group “Service Magicis a very innovative but practical approach for taking your service to the next level.” —John Goodman, President of TARP “Service Magic provides delicious ideas for giving customers a smile on their face and a reason to return.” —Phil Romano, Founder of Romano’s Macaroni Grill This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the pub- lisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Vice President and Publisher: Cynthia A. Zigmund Senior Managing Editor: Jack Kiburz Interior Design: Lucy Jenkins Cover Design: Scott Rattray, Rattray Design Typesetting: the dotted i Interior Art: Douglas Oudekerk Cover images from Masterfile® and photographer Bill Frymire (Stars) and from Getty Images Taxi Collection and photographer Scott Morgan (top hat). © 2003 by Performance Research Associates, Inc. Published by Dearborn Trade Publishing A Kaplan Professional Company All rights reserved. The text of this publication, or any part thereof, may not be re- produced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher. Printed in the United States of America 03 04 05 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Zemke, Ron. Service magic : the art of amazing your customers / Ron Zemke and Chip Bell. p. cm. Includes index. ISBN 0-7931-6467-2 (6x9 pbk.) 1. Customer services—United States. 2. Consumer satisfaction—United States. 3. Customer loyalty—United States. 4. Service industries—Customer services—United States. I. Bell, Chip R. II. Title. HF5415.5.Z465 2003 658.8(cid:1)12—dc21 2003001187 Dearborn Trade books are available at special quantity discounts to use for sales promotions, employee premiums, or educational purposes. Please call our Special Sales Department to order, or for more information, at 800-621-9621, ext. 4404, or e-mail [email protected]. F O R E W O R D Service Magic is not about creating illusions. It is a powerful book that applies the art and skill of stage magic to the creation of a service experience that seems magical. What does that look like? When the service you receive leaves you with a smile on your face and a story to tell, you have just had a bona fide service magic experience. It is pre- cisely that magic that Ron Zemke and Chip Bell now bring within the reach of any willing reader. They cleverly show us how to use Place, Process, and Performance to produce a magical result for your cus- tomers—and do it with regularity and charm. Service Magic has an ingredient rare in other books but not surpris- ing to me given my long acquaintance with the authors. Zemke and Bell have managed to integrate and interweave the latest research on cus- tomer care and their theory of Service Magic without faltering or bor- ing the reader. I am equally awed and impressed at the generous way they cite the work of others. I respect their willingness to point out the shoulders on which they stand. In the last decade, Zemke and Bell have written a number of first- rate, award-winning books on customer care and service. Service Magic will quickly take a place on, and likely go to the head of, this long, dis- tinguished list. It is important, inspiring, fun, and applicable. It clearly and cleverly presents the ingredients that keep customers coming back for more, because, in the language of FISH!,it shows you how to “make their day.” —Stephen C. Lundin, Ph.D. Coauthor of FISH!, FISH! Tales, and FISH! Sticks v C O N T E N T S Acknowledgments xi S E C T I O N O N E The Anatomy of Service Magic The creation of memorable, positive customer service is strikingly parallel in structure and outcome to fine stage magic. While exemplars like Nordstrom, The Ritz-Carlton Hotels, and USAA Insurance are famous for their uses of enchantment, special practices come from organizations as diverse as Wayzata Dental, the St. Paul Saints, and the Hairy Cactus Nail Salon. 1. The Art and Craft of the Stage Magician 3 2. The Service Magic Method™:An Architecture for Practical Amazement 12 3. Place,Process,Performance:The Three Ps of Service Magic 23 S E C T I O N T W O Place Magic The service magician’s role as supporting cast and elucidator of Place Magic is a subtle but critical adjunct to experience and effort. Take a lesson from the likes of Universal Studios, Sewell Village Cadillac, Old Faithful Inn, Ed Debevic’s Diner, and Steinway & Sons on how the setting can be managed to leave customers with an unforgettable experience. 4. Natural Place Magic:Nature’s Own ...Plus 41 5. High-Level Man-Made Place Magic 47 6. Applying Little Magics in Big Places 57 7. Third Place Magic 65 vii viii CONTENTS S E C T I O N T H R E E Process Magic Policies, procedures, and routines from initial contact to problem solving that amaze the customer with their ease and simplicity are magical. Hotel Monaco, Aurora Health Care, MidAmerican Energy, and Byerly’s Grocery Store are a few examples of service providers who craft processes with style and grace that enhance the experience. 8. Process Magic:Blending Comfortable Consistency with Surprise 75 9. Magical Scripts 86 10. The Six Secrets of Magical Service Recovery 95 S E C T I O N F O U R Performance Magic Great service magicians, like stage magicians, are masters of audience dissection. They read customers in order to tailor their performance. Sometimes the “read” warns the service magician to replace what is planned; sometimes it simply cues a change in presentation. Café Un Deux Trois, the Peabody Hotel, and the Minnesota Renaissance Festival provide some of the unique insights into elevating the usual to the amazing. 11. Reading Your Audience 109 12. Magical Rapport:Matching Trick to Audience 119 13. Delivering Magical Dialogues 128 14. The Tenants of Performance Magic 136 S E C T I O N F I V E A Different Kind of Magic:The Virtual Realm Service Magic is not just the realm of brick-and-mortar offerings. Successful e-service ventures are skillful practitioners of “virtual” Service Magic. Lesser known e-ventures like REI.com, Chipotle.com, Clinique.com, Godiva.com, and LillianVernon.com have developed creative ways to enchant their customers and yield impressive traffic and retention. 15. Virtual Place Magic 145 16. Virtual Performance Magic 149 17. Virtual Process Magic 152 ix CONTENTS S E C T I O N S I X Where the Three Ps Come Together There is magic in Place, Performance, and Process—and all three magics are available to the skilled service magician. Romano’s Macaroni Grill, Von Maur, Children’s Memorial Hospital, All-Outdoors Whitewater Rafting, and QVC are mini-case examples of organizations that use the 3 Ps to regularly create customer experiences that are unpredictable, valuable, and reproducible. 18. Romano’s Macaroni Grill:Where Life Is Delicious— and a Little Magical 163 19. Von Maur:Midwestern Magic Spreads Across the Prairie 169 20. Children’s Memorial Hospital:We’re Not in a Hospital Anymore,Toto 175 21. All-Outdoors Whitewater Rafting:Where Magical Rides Start on Virtual Rivers 181 22. QVC:Real People Creating Virtual Magic 185 S E C T I O N S E V E N The Service Magician’s Pocket Toolkit:Something Old,Something New,Many Things Borrowed,Nothing Blue No magic book would be complete without a compendium of helpful tools for creating and delivering simple magical service. This section provides many examples of simple yet provocative ways service providers have transformed a routine service experience into one customers rave about to their colleagues. 23. Place Pocket Service Magic 195 24. Process Pocket Service Magic 199 25. Performance Pocket Service Magic 206 26. Magical Recovery 214 Appendix A: The Service Magic Impact Audit™ 221 Appendix B: Recommended Resources 229 Endnotes 233 Index 241 About the Authors 247