Brainstorm: How can you provide Unreasonable Hospitality to your customers?

[Pesso]

Hey Square Readers, 

We hope you’ve started to dive into reading Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara! Last week we kicked things off with a baseline discussion on your own experiences with exceptional hospitality. Today we’re covering what Unreasonable Hospitality is, and exploring how to provide it to your customers.

What is Unreasonable Hospitality?

The author explains that providing small acts of hospitality can absolutely thrill your customers, make it feel like you’re performing magic, and make their experience with your business a story that they’ll remember forever. Delivering incredible service for someone in a time of need can transform their day, relieve sorrow even for a minute, and create a deep emotional connection for them with your business. 

It’s thoughtfully putting your customers needs first in a way that is deep and meaningful to them to create a catered experience. It can be something as small as giving a genuine welcome and having a meaningful conversation, a personal touch of remembering a birthday or a family detail, an act of service like feeding their parking meter, or a Surprise & Delight gesture of providing a welcome gift or thank you goodbye gift. It should be something thoughtful and meaningful to your customers that fills a need that they have, and references a conversation you’ve had together. 

How can you provide Unreasonable Hospitality?

Now let’s brainstorm ideas for our own businesses, and give each other some suggestions too!

Again, this is a pure brainstorm here, no idea is too big or extravagant. This is Unreasonable Hospitality, after all. Only after you’ve found some big ideas that you like, then next time we'll figure out how to do it in an affordable, scalable, and realistic way. 

Share your answers in the comments:

1. Tell us about your business: What is your industry? How do you currently serve your customers? What common needs do your customers have? What are the deeper reasons they come to you? 
2. What are some new ideas of ways you could provide incredible tailored experiences for your customers? No idea is too big!
3. Reply to other members’ comments and share some ideas that could help them. Having an outside perspective is extremely valuable! 

Feel free to share any other thoughts you have about this book. We can’t wait to hear your thoughts in the comments below!

Don’t forget to:

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Happy reading,

Pesso

[Pesso]

Also I recently went to a coffee/tea house and thought of you -- they had a wall of "pay it forward" tickets, where folks could pay for anything they'd want to give to someone else, the staff would print out the ticket/receipt and put it on sculpture on the wall, and anyone who wanted on any given day could come in and grab one and redeem it. The wall was full and no one was using them, so it didn't look like folks were taking advantage of it, which was really cool. Obviously wouldn't work everywhere and would take a bit to get started, but it's a cool thing somewhat inline with UH.

[DLFdesigns]

What about coffee "flights" like they do with craft beers or wine?

[Pesso]

Oooh I love that idea too, @DLFdesigns ! 

[DLFdesigns]

I'm enjoying reading Unreasonable Hospitality and have come to the conclusion that you can use these principles for life in general and any business or organization. I am a sole proprietor jewelry artisan. My specialty is making jewelry with meaning, so I do mostly custom pieces. I only take one custom a month, so I can give a real personalized service. I like to co-create with my clients, either in person or via zoom or FaceTime. That way they can see some stones to choose from, and I can sketch an idea and talk out the details before I start creating. I check in with the client as I go and send them a photo when it's finished to approve. I use special gift boxes and always send it with a handwritten thank you note. After they receive their jewelry, I contact them to see how it fits/looks. Nine times out of ten, they have already contacted me to say they love it. I also ask them for a modelled photo if they're comfortable and I post them on Instagram. 

I have other ideas to add more hospitality. I thought about asking for my client's partner's information so that I can give gift suggestions to them. I already keep a list of what each client purchases, so I can match what they already have or at least know what they like. 

Any other ideas for me? 

[Pesso]

I'm so glad you're enjoying and getting so much out of the book, @DLFdesigns ! I absolutely agree that there's so much here that can be used in so many different applications-

Yours sounds like such a wonderfully in-depth and personalized business -- I love all of the touches you provide to make sure the client is informed, cared for, and knows it. 

Hmm, I'm thinking about what else you can do with all of the incredibly detailed knowledge you have about your clients. If they're telling you so much about their lives and occasions and things, what about adding in an extra gift or personal touch that applies? If they're getting it for a wedding, then sending along an additional little wedding present & card -- or if they mention they have a kid, sending along a little piece of children jewelry so they feel included too. 

[DLFdesigns]

Great ideas!

[Pesso]

Thanks! Just some kickoff ideas -- I'd love to hear from you what thoughts and things you could do along similar lines--

[DLFdesigns]

I just delivered a pair of earrings to my yoga instructor. They have changeable pearl earring charms. I'm going to bring her a pair of charms in a stone to support her practice at the next class as a gift, because she is a gift to my health! 

I am hosting a "Galentine's Week" in my small community to create more awareness of other woman owned businesses and creatives here. There are only 600 people living in my small prairie town, but we have gathered 16 woman owned businesses in a fb group and 9 of us are participating in Galentine's Week. 

Creating the community of woman owned businesses means we support one another, tell others about each other and buy from each other! 

I didn't think it would benefit my business as much as my mental health, but my website has seen 3 sales in the past two days - two from other communities! That is more than I've sold on my website for a very long time. I usually sell in person. Building community works. 

[ChickenRacer]

Galentines I love it!

[Pesso]

That is all so wonderful to hear, @DLFdesigns ! So great that you're embracing giving and creating community, and that it's paying off in so many ways! Thanks so much for sharing-