Many companies think they have to compare themselves to their competition, they want to know what the competition is doing that they are not and when they figure it out, you know what they do? They copy them.

It’s not a bad idea to do that, but it’s not the best idea either. If all you do is compare yourself to your competitors, you may be missing your best opportunities to create the best experience for your customers.

In my newest book, I’ll Be Back: How to Get Customers to Come Back Again and Again, I cover a six-step process to getting your customers to say, “I’ll be back.” I’m going to summarize the process here. It’s not complicated. It’s actually pretty simple, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. So let’s jump right into it.

Start by calling a meeting. In all, it will probably take at least two or three meetings. Leadership should be there along with other employees with varied responsibilities, from sales, support, finance, and more.

• Step One: Ask yourself and the team, “Why should people do business with us?” Answers like, “We have great customer service” are too vague and also something the competition is likely to say. Get specific and think of what you offer that makes you unique.

• Step Two: Check out the competition. What do they do that you don’t? Is this something you could be doing? Look for ways they differentiate themselves from what you do.

• Step Three: Keep pace. If you discover things that the competition is doing that you’re not, and you decide you want to do something similar, don’t just copy their ideas. Give them a twist and make them your own. If you copy them, you’ll be just like them. And if all you are is a copy of the competition, you are a commodity.

• Step Four: Move beyond your industry. Ask the team, “What companies, not including the competitors, do you like doing business with the most, and why?” Any type of company counts small, big, recognizable brands, and more. List reasons you like them and get ready for the next step.

• Step Five: Borrow from the best. Looking at the reasons you like the companies listed in Step Four, make note of what these companies do that you don’t, but could. This is a powerful way to create even more distance from your competition.

• Step Six: Revisit your value proposition. After you’ve built the ideas in Step Five into your customer experience, go back to the question you started with in Step One: “Why should people do business with us?” You should have some new answers. Even better answers will help you create a better customer experience.

Repeat customers are gold. Loyal customers are sacred. Do it right and your customers will come back again and again. Put this six-step process into action, along with other ideas, strategies, and tactics from the book. This is exactly what it takes to get your customers to say, I’ll Be Back!

Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, keynote speaker and New York Times bestselling business author. For information contact or www.hyken.com. For information on The Customer Focus™ customer service training programs go to www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken. Shep is a regular contributor to 4Hoteliers.com.

(Copyright © 2021, Shep Hyken - Reprinted with Permission)