Surprise!

Business can be faceless, cold, and transactional.

But it doesn’t have to be.

We often connect as strangers, trade goods and services and then move on with our day.

But what happens when you break that pattern?

What happens if you do something that shows that as a business owner you care about your audience - your customers - more than the next guy?

So today I’m going to talk about:

• Surprise and delight
• Why the meaning matters most
• Why secrets are key

Surprise and delightYou smell the familiar odor as you walk up to McDonalds.As the french-fries are being prepared in the back, you know exactly what you want, and you know exactly how to order.When the food comes, it looks exactly the same the last time you ordered it.It looks the same. It tastes the same. It even destroys your body the same way as last time 😬But the fact is - there are no surprises to this experience.And it’s engineered to be consistent everywhere.That’s the goal.But you’re not slinging fries or pushing greasy burgers.You’re building a business where your expertise is key to changing people’s lives.So at every turn you should be looking for ways to bring surprise and delight to your customers.Look for unexpected ways to associate positive feeling with you and your brand so that they know a few key things:

1. They matter. When you surprise your customers, you’re communicating that you’re thinking about them when they’re not thinking about you. You’re showing that you’re willing to take the time to craft an experience that goes beyond their expectations.
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2. You matter: Those who want to build a fly-by-night course business who are on the prowl for a money grab do the bare minimum. Nope. You’re different. You’re showing people that you’re willing to put your name on your work and that how you show up every day matters - not just to a prospective client - but to you because you take pride in your craftsmanship.

Size doesn’t matter

Your surprises don’t need to be elaborate.

They just need to be unexpected.

I’ve seen some course creators drop mini-courses after a purchase.

So now the customer has the info they came for, and them BOOM they get this extra set of content they didn’t even see coming.Just think for a second about how much goodwill that produces.

But that’s a bit elaborate.

They can (and sometimes should) be small things as well.

Inside jokes can be surprises.

One of my clients, Don’t Forget the Bubbles, provides continuing education courses for doctors in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand.

A the end of my first coaching call with them, I ended with..

“Oh… one more thing… I don’t want to forget this…”

They loved it!

Size doesn’t matter → meaning does.

Secrets

Here’s the thing…You have to keep it a secret.

Once people expect to get something, then it’s more of a bonus than anything else.

Surprises can’t take people by surprise unless they don’t see it coming.

So build your surprises, but make sure to spring them on people.

Don’t tip your hand or else you’ll dilute the purpose of the surprise in the first place.

That’s why I’m walking a line in this article.

I want to show you that I lead by example, but I don’t want to give too many details away about how I work to surprise my client.

For me…

Every new coaching client gets a handmade customized gift.

The gift comes with a handwritten note on a handmade card stamped with a custom stamp I had made.

I write each note personally and I package them myself.And I’ve sent theses all over the world.

What’s the gift?

Well, you’ll have to become a client to find out 😎

So build in surprises (and keep them a secret)

But most importantly…be intentional.