Customers don’t care about your intentions, they care about consistent, measurable results that meet or exceed their expectations.

Recently, Debi Potgieter interviewed me for her podcast XMgage. We talked about creating a customer-focused culture, handling complaints, and much more. Toward the end of the interview, she used the word “intentions” related to creating a great experience. After the interview, I told her that, whether she knew it or not, she was on to something.

Intentions are just that, intentions. Without structure or a way to measure intentions, all you have is wishful thinking.

There’s an old saying that a goal without a deadline is a dream. Without the deadline, there is no urgency. There can be a delay, or worse, the goal is never achieved. That is not dissimilar to the concept of intentions. Intention is like having a goal without a deadline. It is about effort, not about results.

For intentions to matter, there must be a clear definition of success. What does a great experience actually look like? How do you know if you delivered it? And more importantly, how do you make it happen every time?

Translate intentions into specific behaviors. For example:

• Instead of an intention to “be friendly,” train employees to greet customers with a smile, and within 10 seconds of them walking into the store.
• Instead of an intention to return a call “quickly,” train employees to return calls within one hour (or whatever your standard is),

Words like “friendly” and “quickly” need definition. When employees understand the standard behind the intention, are properly trained to meet or exceed those standards, and are given positive feedback when they do, they will consistently deliver on the intentions you define.

Intentions set directions. They reflect your customer-focused culture. They can make your customer service and CX values come to life. And, they are the promise of the experience you want to deliver.

But, customers don’t experience your intentions. They experience what actually happens.

Furthermore, customers don’t really care about your intentions. Intentions don’t impress customers. Results do. They may feel the intention of your effort, but in the end, what they care about is simple: Did you meet their expectations, or even better, exceed them?

The best employees and companies that win aren’t the ones with the best intentions. They are the ones who turn those intentions into clear expectations, consistent actions, and measurable results. That’s how you move from the intention – a dream – to the reality of amazing your customers!

Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops at www.Hyken.com. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.