Warmer Service

My wife and I often have conversations about companies that offer stellar sales and service. Yesterdays conversation is proof positive that a company can improve the customer experience in meaningful ways regardless of the industry. (Yes, I did get her permission to post this)

Yesterday was the regular mammogram and let me stop right here and encourage you to get the appropriate regular screenings regardless of your gender. When she returned home I asked her how everything went. The best news of course was that the results were clear but then she continued with a glowing report about the experience which apparently was a significant upgrade from previous ones. An associate offered extra clothing to protect her modesty when she had to run to the restroom mid exam. The kicker was that this screening company now offered warmed jells and equipment. I won't go into greater detail... suffice it to say she was elated with the improvement.

We can all improve service and customer experiences regardless of the industry we work in!

Servant Selling on The Used Car Lot???

Unless you've shopped at CarMax, I already know what you're thinking. Servant Selling on a car lot, especially a used car lot is some kind of oxymoran or contradiction in terms. Used car shopping is about as much fun as a root canal. Well... not anymore. I've been hearing about CarMax for several years but I've had a series of new cars, company cars, and the like so I haven't been in the market for a used car. My wife and financial guru Dave Ramsey convinced me to pay cash and avoid the debt route so used car shopping we went.

We tried the usual used car end of the new car lots first. As you might imagine, I love great sales people with really professional approaches but that's often not what you find when you go car shopping. And things haven't gotten better since my last visit to the car lot. With the melt down in the car industry, if anything, things are worse.

After several rounds of abuse, my wife and I decided to drive the 45 minutes it took to get to the nearest CarMax. What a difference. We were given plenty of space and an opportunity to just walk around the lot to see what we liked. CarMax sales people don't pounce. They allow you to come and ask for help.

When we did ask, we were served by an awesome professional named Jarett. He educated us on how the CarMax system worked. My defenses dropped and we spent a couple of the most enjoyable car shopping hours of my life. Jarett showed us exactly what we asked to see, set up test drives, and introduced a couple of options we hadn't considered. He gave us a tour of the service facility and we found that set up as compelling as the sales department.

CarMax is now a Fortune 500 company that sells more used cars than anyone else in the country. They have also been listed as one of the "100 Best Places to Work" for the last 3 years in a row.

Their slogan, "The way car buying should be" are not just hollow words. These guys and gals are "Servant Salespeople" to the MAX!