By Heidi Overman
Zingerman's Deli in Ann Arbor, MichiganIn 1982, Ari Weinzweig and Paul Saginaw opened Zingerman’s Delicatessen in Ann Arbor, Mich. Their intention was to offer a world-class corned beef sandwich in a retail space where customers would be surrounded by exceptional food. Thirty years later, and still rooted in Ann Arbor, the Zingerman’s Community of Businesses employs over 500 people and generates annual sales of over $35 million.
In 2003, Bo Burlingham and Inc. magazine named Zingerman’s Deli The Coolest Small Company in America. Later, Burlingham’s book, Small Giants, featured Zingerman’s as a company that chose to be great instead of big.
This September, participants in the CUES’ ServiStar Users Group program gathered in Savannah, Ga., with a member of the Zingerman’s staff to learn more about what makes a “small giant” and to apply that learning to the sales and service efforts at their credit unions.
Michael Neill, CSE, president and founder of Michael Neill & Associates, Inc., had been impressed by the story of Zingerman's Deli in the book Small Giants. “I felt much of what Zingerman's had done to create a unique culture was transferable to our ServiStar credit union clients,” he said.
Zingerman’s Katie Frank, consultant with ZingTrain, traveled to Savannah to discuss the power and pitfalls of choosing an untraditional path and to assist with documenting a vision of greatness for participants’ credit unions. Zingerman’s believes wholeheartedly that writing a vision of success for a business is the necessary first step in achieving success.
"My biggest takeaway was how important culture and strategy are to the success of sales and service,” noted Tansley Stearns, CME, CSE, former AVP/corporate strategy and government relations for $4.7 billion Bethpage Federal Credit Union, Bethpage, N.Y., and soon to be on the team at Filene Research Institute.
“It was so clear how the Zingerman's culture is nurtured and cared for and how that foundational work has helped to lead the organization to success. Strategically they know exactly who they are. They have defined that they will always remain in Ann Arbor and have clearly defined how expansion will work and where it will be directed. This laser sharp focus helps steer and direct their sales and service efforts and their effectiveness."
One of the most important lessons that Zingerman’s has learned over its 30 years is that resources are best invested in taking people who are already big fans of what they do, people who are already promoters, and solidifying them as lifetime customers.
Before learning this lesson, says an article on the ZingTrain site, “we were putting more effort into making unhappy or marginally satisfied customers happy. That’s important work too, and we do it regularly. But findings have pushed us to gently reprioritize, to work proactively with people who already are, or are soon likely to become, promoters of our business. We call the form where we capture the input of happy customers a “Code Green” and we call this focus “turning greens into evergreens”—as in, taking these customers to an extremely high level of long-term loyalty, or making them promoters for life.”
Neill said it was instructive to hear Zingerman’s Frank share how the company intentionally facilitates its employees’ understanding of what acts of outrageous service look like through its green to evergreen model.
“With 26 turning greens into evergreens techniques for building lifetime members, choosing one is a challenge,” added CUES member Wendy Jackson, AVP/service and sales experience for $897 million LGE Community Credit Union, Marietta, Ga. “ I like the idea that we need to take a mental pause when we are 70 percent into the member interaction to ask, ‘What score would my member rate me right now on a scale of 0 to 10? What do I need to do right now to make it a 10 or a WOW?"
Overall, ServiStar users found the Zingerman’s session applicable to their credit unions’ sales and service efforts. Jackson is excited to review her in-house sales training material and incorporate techniques shared from Zingerman’s.
“I also plan to feature key points in our monthly service updates for the next several months to share with all staff so everyone can benefit from what we learned," she said.
Heidi Overman is professional development manager for CUES.
ServiStar Users Group will be held next in Seattle, Sept. 11-12, 2013.
