Page 217 - The Apple Experience

2009, Amazon purchased Zappos for $1.2 billion. Today Zappos is
considered one of the best places to work as well as a champion of

exceptional customer service. I have interviewed CEO Tony Hsieh before,

and when I visited the Zappos headquarters in Henderson, Nevada, I had a

chance to speak to many of his employees. It gave me an inside look into how

Zappos has established itself as one of the leaders in customer service. Here

are four tips I learned from Hsieh about building a consistent corporate

culture where everybody lives the brand’s values.
7

Treat Everyone Like Family

You might remember the story I told in Part I about the shuttle bus

driver who picked me up from the hotel. I was the only one on the bus.

When I asked the driver why she drove all the way out to pick me up, she

said, “We treat all of our customers as family. If you had a family member in

town, wouldn’t you pick them from their hotel or the airport?” Once I

entered Zappos headquarters, I discovered that each and every employee and

phone representative shared the same enthusiasm. They were eager to share
their culture and would answer any question that I asked. No public relations

person escorted me through the halls as they do in most companies. I could

speak to anybody about anything. That’s how much Zappos trusts its

employees to articulate the company’s vision.

Empower Your Team

The Zappos customer service reps are not required to follow a script nor

do they have to adhere to time limits on their calls. Their only mission is to

wow customers and create an emotional connection with them. For example,
every employee has postcards sitting next to the phone. They are encouraged

to build relationships with customers and drop them a handwritten note.