Crafting the Customer Experience For People Not Like You: How to Delight and Engage the Customers Your Competitors Don't Understand

LA FAMILIA (THE FAMILY) IS KEY

Everyone likes to think that they put their family first. Hispanic customers put special emphasis on your treatment of the whole family, which can make or break your sale and determine how the customer views the entire experience. Even when family members aren’t the ones who will use the product or service directly, their opinion matters and can sway the decision-making process. We learned from Mattress Firm managers and sales associates that the kids in the family often help decide which mattress to buy, even though the mattress was for mom and dad and they wouldn’t even necessarily ever be sleeping on it. They weren’t just along on the shopping trip; they were active participants in the purchasing process.

Once you know and understand this important family dynamic, you can cater to it. For instance, several years ago, one of my employees and her husband were looking for a new SUV. They were torn between two different brands, a Chevy model and a Toyota model. There were things they liked about both, and they were having a hard time deciding which to buy. This employee and her family, including her husband, are Hispanic. During the shopping process, they spent considerable time at the competing dealerships, learning about the vehicles, test-driving them, and talking with the sales associates. They didn’t want to make a rash decision, since both SUVs were priced at more than $40,000, a substantial purchase. So they visited each dealership a couple ...