People love and are loyal to their iPhones even though Samsung is a superior (and cheaper) product.
Customer Experience Specialist Dennis Moseley-Williams made the bold statement during an energetic lunchtime workshop at LeafHouse Financial’s annual retirement symposium Wednesday in Austin to illustrate a larger point about consumer loyalty and retention in an increasingly commoditized industry.
“The iPhone is the loyalty of connection and identity; it’s more than a phone, it’s a tool to view the world,” Moseley-Williams, founder of DMW Strategic Consulting, said. “Verizon, AT&T, or whatever carrier it’s on is the loyalty of fear and obligation. It’s something you need but not necessarily want. The fact that Samsung is a better product doesn’t matter because some things are more important than function.”
Enter the Tale of Two barbers, which was the thrust of his presentation to argue that even when everything is (seemingly) done right, it’s wrong.
Moseley-Williams had the same barber for years, a no-frills, cheap and convenient coiffeur mere blocks from his house. Open from 6 am to 8 pm, service and value were the shop’s hallmarks.
Yet, a chance encounter with a family friend led to what he called a “What the hell?” moment, one that resulted in the all-important emotional customer connection that caused him to act.
The friend had come from a newer barber where her child had been “hipstered up.” Curious and with time to kill, Moseley-Williams walked over. As he drew close, he saw what he described as a storefront with a living room inside, unconsciously thinking, “I hope that’s it.” Outfitted in a retro design, a picture of actor Christopher Walken adorned the front door with a sign that read, “We take walk-ins.”
Upon entering, he noticed the barber chairs faced one another instead of forward, and customers spoke to each other. He was offered coffee, and despite the clock reading 10:50 am, a shot of Irish whiskey to add flavor.
“It was my ‘What the Hell?’ moment. I had nothing to do, tried the new place, and my old barber immediately lost me as a customer.”
The reason, Moseley-Williams claimed, is that humans love stories, yet businesses love the opposite—uniformity, efficiency, and for things to run smoothly. As a result, community is lost. Too often, advisors pride themselves on quality service while failing to understand or outright ignoring the experience and how it makes the client feel.
“As advisors, clients should leave your office after an appointment and feel proud of themselves that they were able to accomplish something significant,” he added. “Most hotels text you to ask if you’d like to check in early and then hit you with solicitations to upgrade. They let you know you’re just a transaction. A chain like the Four Seasons emphasizes the experience and earns a significant premium as a result.”
He then described the “Flow of Experience” in five stages:
- Enticing: Look and feel as he approached
- Entering: Retro look, cool and different
- Engaging: It wasn’t a haircut; it was a show/production, and something staged
- Exciting: While good until now, the new barbershop failed to sustain his initial enthusiasm
- Extending: Even though he was disappointed with the finish, he consistently returned on the strength of the first three
“Focus on the experience, not service,” Moseley-Williams concluded. “If you stick with service and convenience, you’re subject to ‘What the hell moments?’ My old barber was cheaper, more convenient, and consistent, yet he lost me as a customer. Why? There was no community, and it wasn’t an experience.”
With more than 20 years serving financial markets, John Sullivan is the former editor-in-chief of Investment Advisor magazine and retirement editor of ThinkAdvisor.com. Sullivan is also the former editor of Boomer Market Advisor and Bank Advisor magazines, and has a background in the insurance and investment industries in addition to his journalism roots.
