We may not realize it, but we all seek "remarkable experiences" in our business and personal dealings with others.  Unfortunately, remarkable experiences are very rare.  When we find one, we go out of our way to tell our friends, and we form a bond of trust with the provider that is very difficult to break...and it can become like "glue" for the relationship.

An auto dealer, a CPA firm, a doctor, and a air conditioning repair company may all seek to provide a "remarkable experience" for their customers even though their products differ widely.  What produces a "remarkable experience" are the things that the provider surrounds his product with...the extra services she provides, the extra conversations he has.

We don't know or usually care about our car's horsepower, the number of pages in our tax return, where our doctor got his MD degree, nor what the AC unit's SEER rating is.  What we remember is the experience we have when we buy or use the product.

We remember the celebration at the dealer's showroom when we picked up our new car.  We remember the way our CPA followed up with us, and found us a little-known deduction because he asked a few more pertinent questions.  We remember the call we got at home from our doctor, asking how we were feeling after our surgery.  We remember how our air conditioning repair company came to fix our broken AC unit on the 4th of July, when everyone else was closed.

My point is that the conversations, dialogues, and personal touches that surround the product are the things that add value and that build relationship with the customer and the client, and are the things that produce "remarkable experiences".

Companies should go out of their way to engage their customers in innovative conversations that add value for the customer.  Opportunities for these conversations abound in every business, but are either not seen, or not prioritized.

Business volumes, profits, and loyalty are lost as a result.