Be More Fred…

Learn from your postman…

What could you learn from your postman about customer service, service excellence, quality of service etc? I have just picked up and read ‘The Fred Factor’, a book I first read almost 20 years ago and once again, I have been refreshed on some of the simplest things that make such a big difference.

In the search for creating and being able to differentiate because you and/or your business provided the ultimate in customer experience, Mark Sanborn, the author of The Fred Factor, found it in the attitude, behaviour, and approach to work of his postman! Then, using the basic principles that Fred held important, he was able to offer some brilliant insight into what ‘makes a good Fred’ or in clearer terms, ‘what makes for brilliant customer service’.

In this blog we will explore the ‘Fred’ principles, encourage you to consider how they transfer into your work life, and more importantly how they transfer into making for a brilliant customer experience… 

The Four Fred’s

 Principle 1: Everyone Makes a Difference

It does not matter what your role is or the size of business you work for, every individual can make a difference. For Fred this was treating everyone with respect and through consistently being positive, showing everyone that there are no unimportant roles, just people who feel unimportant in their roles. This encouraged a famous magazine founder to quote “There is more credit and satisfaction in being a first-rate Fred, than a tenth-rate chief executive”.

 Principle 2: Success is Built on Relationships

The role of being a postman is fundamentally the same everyday – ‘Take paid postage deliverables and deliver them to the noted destination’, 99% of postman do this every day with ease. For Fred this was just the basic function, his service excelled because he took time to understand each home in his area – when they holidayed (keeping an eye on their premises), when they were expecting important mail…he knew everything that was important to his customers…becoming a friend and importantly, a very trusted service provider. His gift? He knew the success of his role involved interacting successfully with humans and he mastered the art.

 Principle 3: You Must Create Value for Others, and it Does not have to Cost a Penny!

The author once shared with Fred that he was facing a challenge from his team saying that they needed training, the right opportunities and investment to be able to create more value in their roles.

 He then looked at Fred…a drab blue uniform, bag full of mail, and no extra resource, yet recognised by his customer base for adding extra value and making the service they got from him special.  Fred had a clear challenge for himself everyday ‘never end a day asking yourself – how good a job could I have done today?’. Then measure how successful you have been by how much you excelled beyond the minimum requirements…and at no financial cost!

 Principle 4: You Can Reinvent Yourself Regularly

While Fred’s job was to simply post the mail, his ability to look at this simple role differently on a regular basis, and create unusual approaches to delivering the mail, had his customers impressed, amused and engaged in equal measure. His aim with each reinvention? To produce personal excellence, show creativity and always demonstrate unwavering commitment to the customer.

 Based on these four principles the big consideration must be …how do I measure up? So here are the measures for your Fred Factor Report Card.

·         Do you and your colleagues know that you make a difference?

·         Do you and your colleagues know how to build relationships?

·         Does everyone in your team know how to create value?

·         Do you and your colleagues realise how much more you could reinvent yourself through innovation and passionate commitment?

 The thread…

In the search for lasting, positive customer relationships that are perceived by each customer as delivering excellence, then perhaps it is the simplest of things that make a difference. The answers are probably available in the people you interact with everyday…from your postman, the person who serves you coffee each morning, to your window cleaner. As the quote goes “There is more credit and satisfaction in being a first-rate Fred, than a tenth-rate chief executive”

 And Finally…

I asked my wife, ‘I'm stuck on this crossword clue Overworked Postman — can you help?’

She said, ‘Sure. How many letters?’