This is a post about learning from the best.
What do the top brands do that earn so much loyalty?
How do they win people over, over and over again?
1. Starbucks – warm, predictable atmosphere
Starbucks is well-known for many things. They don’t actually have the best coffee in the world – just good-enough coffee that’s consistent and reliable. You know to expect the same sort of experience and service from Starbucks around the world.
2. Subway – tasty bread smell
The thing that always gets me about Subway is the smell of the bread. There’s an outlet near where I work, and I have to walk past it every morning. Several times, I have ended up buying a Subway sandwich because the smell of the bread was just too enticing.
How could you be using smells to allure your customers?
3. Apple – premium experience
Apple stores are all about simplicity and elegance. There’s a lot of big open space, and everything is minimalist.
The effect is a focus on the products. If you look at the walls, the ‘decorations’ are all high-resolution pictures of the products in action.
How could you make your product the hero of your store?
4. Lululemon – social warmth
Lululemon is more about warmth, and socializing. They turn some of their stores into yoga studios after hours.
5. IKEA – fun, immersive experience
The magical thing about IKEA is that it creates this large, immersive experience for customers to navigate. You might go there wanting to buy a couple of things, but end up with an entire trolley’s worth. A lot of this is about seeing things in the context in which they might be used.
How can you create an experience and contextualize things for your customers?