Hug Your Customers - AchieveMax® Top Ten Book Review

Don't panic. Jack Mitchell, the author of Hug Your Customers: The Proven Way to Personalize Sales and Achieve Astounding Results, isn't suggesting that you take his title literally. Hugging your customers, he says, has nothing to do with being touchy-feely around them and everything to do with offering them over-the-top service. His advice is hardly groundbreaking. For instance, what rookie employee has not heard the old adages such as "know your customer, think outside the box, have a 'no problem' attitude"? While we've all heard this obvious, age-old advice repeatedly, how many of us can honestly say we've seen it practiced with any level of success where we shop, eat, travel, etc.? That's the point of this book. Everyone knows what should be done to create repeat customers ... very few people do it!

Chances are pretty good that you've never heard of this author or his business establishment. Jack Mitchell is co-owner and CEO of Mitchells/Richards, two independent clothing stores in southern Connecticut and New York's Westchester County (two of Manhattan's most affluent suburbs). This upper-end clothing retailer dresses many Fortune 500 executives from Chase, GE, IBM, Merrill Lynch and Pepsi to name a few. Today, Mitchells/Richards sells $65 million in apparel annually. However, the store began as a modest family business, started by Jack's dad in 1958. Don't make the mistake of tuning out at this point because you don't work in the clothing business. What Jack learned from his father decades ago can be applied to any and all customer-centric businesses that appreciate the importance of knowing that having satisfied customers no longer insures success-you must have extremely satisfied customers who want to return time and time again and encourage others to do the same!

Mitchell credits his family store's success to making the store a home, where customers feel welcome. Mitchell says his parents: "... understood that customers wanted five things more than they wanted a great location or enormous inventory:

  • A friendly greeting
  • Personal interest
  • A business that makes them feel special
  • A 'no problem' attitude
  • Forward thinking
  • For Mitchell, that means literally offering a customer the coat off your back, if that's the only one left in the store in the customer's size and preferred style and color. It means going to customers' homes to tie their bow ties for big events. It means serving coffee and bagels in the store and giving away hot dogs in the parking lot on summer Saturdays. Some might view this as fawning, but for Mitchell, it's the best way to keep customers coming back. You, of course, will have to determine what it takes to "HUG" a customer within your environment. This would make an excellent exercise for your staff. Once the crucial determination is crystallized, discuss expectations, training, and follow up to insure success.

    Mitchell writes: "When you have strong relationships, customers will do more of their buying from you. They'll refer other customers. They'll communicate with you better and tell you what they like and what they don't like, in turn making your business more efficient and effective."

    The author points out that hugging is difficult to quantify, and many companies ignore customer satisfaction and customer profiling altogether. While inventory is recorded on the balance sheet, Mitchell tells us that a company's greatest asset-repeat customers-doesn't appear on any financial statements.

    Further, while companies invest significant amounts in computer systems, they rarely develop computer systems that support a hugging culture.

    Mitchell writes: "What's amazing is that although personal relationships are absolutely crucial to any company's success, they are rarely tracked by any system. Hotels don't know who likes queen-sized beds and who wants extra pillows. Airlines don't know who prefers aisle seats and who prefers the window." Can something similar be said about you, your business and your customers? If so, take action to correct this situation.

    Mitchell is a big fan of profiling customers to provide more personal service. He likes his sales associates to know which customers like M&M's and what nicknames they prefer.

    Knowing personal information about each customer is nearly impossible without a database to support this information. However, it doesn't stop there. I know of many companies who boast a tremendous database and yet do nothing with it. Like any other customer service strategy, knowing it is not enough. You have to use it. In today's unbelievably competitive marketplace, there are few who "use it." So-o-o-o-o, define your "HUG," make it an expectation, train your staff to "HUG," practice it, and then, most importantly, "HUG!"

    More than 100 business book reviews written by Harry K. Jones are available at http://www.AchieveMax.com/books/.

    Repr int Information

    Your organization may reprint this article for your newsletter, online publication, or mailing list. We ask that you print the:

    • article in its entirety;
    • byline of the writer;
    • information about the writer, which is available at the end of each article; and
    • contact information, including our toll-free phone number in the U.S. (800-886-2MAX) and link to our website - www.AchieveMax.com.

    We would appreciate a tear sheet or electronic copy of the articles you reprint.

    Harry K. Jones is a professional speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a firm specializing in custom-designed keynote presentations, seminars, and consulting services. Harry has made presentations ranging from leadership to employee retention and time management to stress management for a number of industries, including education, financial, government, healthcare, hospitality, and manufacturing. He can be reached at 800-886-2MAX or by visiting http://www.AchieveMax.com.

    In The News:


    pen paper and inkwell


    cat break through


    Unspoken Dreams - Book Review

    "Carol Bennett writes a stunning mystery-thriller. Her chilling entrance is... Read More

    Until Youve Walked the Path!

    From the depths of despair to the heights of hope.... Read More

    IZEE Growing Up In A Logging Camp: Introduction

    IntroductionRusty Miles never had a real identity. I was that... Read More

    Shattered Memories, Scattered Emotion - Review

    Betty Woodrum released her first book of poetry entitled Shattered... Read More

    Why Malta? A Mystery-Thriller Author Tells Why

    "Why Malta?" my new Maltese friends kept asking me when... Read More

    Pausing To Catch My Breath - Book Review

    "Debra Warren has appropriately titled her book of poetry 'Pausing... Read More

    Ferns Dragon - Book Review

    "Fern's Dragon is a wonderfully fun read that stimulates the... Read More

    Ebook Review: How To Write And Publish Your Own eBook In As Little As 7 Days

    Jim Edwards and Joe Vitale who are both well known... Read More

    Story Structure - Three Heroes

    Three Heroes Story Structure follows the Hero's Journey mould but... Read More

    Your Flight Questions Answered

    Whether you are an experienced air traveler or a novice,... Read More

    Create Your Own Future - AchieveMax® Top Ten Book Review

    Create Your Own Future: How to Master 12 Critical Factors... Read More

    Primal Leadership - A Book Summary

    Primal leadership takes center stage in this book. This concept... Read More

    Men of Extreme Action - Book Review

    "Action, thriller and humor ? this book has it all!... Read More

    Albany, NY Family History Reference Now Available Thanks To Author Joseph Yakel

    "Personal research references, especially for families who once lived in... Read More

    The Red Hourglass: Lives of the Predators, by Gordon Grice

    The black widow spider is notorious for eating her mate... Read More

    10 Best How-To Books Ever Written

    Somebody once said there are more book titles beginning with... Read More

    The Road of Silk: Book Review

    "The Road of Silk is an adventure fantasy, with mystical... Read More

    ARTURO EL REY - Book Review

    This large (about 378 pages), fantasy-adventure novel should give best... Read More

    Screenwriter and Novelist Marguerite Ashton Receives Rave Reviews for Mafia Novel

    When asked what gave her the idea for the story,... Read More

    Dark Autumn - Book Review

    "Now this could definitely be a movie! Dark Autumn is... Read More

    The Power of 2 - AchieveMax® Top Ten Book Review

    The Power of 2: Win Big with People in Your... Read More

    Blues Clues for Success - AchieveMax® Top Ten Book Review

    Blue's Clues for Success: The 8 Secrets Behind A Phenomenal... Read More

    What Really Works - AchieveMax® Top Ten Book Review

    If you watch television, read the newspaper and/or magazines, frequent... Read More

    Moon Child - Review

    Moon Child by Simone Maroney is a larger sized adventure,... Read More

    Review: eBook Secrets Exposed

    If you want to make a lot of money with... Read More

    The Seventh Jewel - Book Review

    The Seventh Jewel is a fantasy-adventure fiction geared for youth... Read More

    Metaphorically Selling

    The Big IdeaA lot of people consider selling a very... Read More

    The Bible Code II: The Countdown, by Michael Drosnin

    Sir Isaac Newton knew about the Bible code 300 hundred... Read More

    Her Backyard: Book Review

    Her Backyard by Doreen Lewis is an adventure, romance novel... Read More

    What $ells on EBay For What - Book Review

    You look at the salesletter and the price tag ($8.95... Read More

    Twin Falls, Gooding, Jerome, ID, and Regional Economic Outlook for 2005

    Twin Falls Economic Report done by me; Twin Falls, ID... Read More

    E-books in Your Life

    E-Books are making a big impact in the way we... Read More

    Book Summary: EVEolution

    For any business to survive today, it needs to understand... Read More