169: How to Apply “The Hospitality Mentality” to Manufacturing

Hospitality and the manufacturing industry couldn’t be further apart, right? But it turns out there are some universal lessons when it comes to delivering a great customer experience that apply no matter what industry you’re in. Whether you’re dealing with guests, customers, clients, or visitors, the “hospitality mentality” is key to success – says returning guest Josh Liebman, guest experience expert, podcast co-host of AttractionPros, and author of The Hospitality Mentality. 

Josh joined us back in episode 17 to talk about what manufacturers can learn from the amusement park industry. In this episode, he goes one step further to break down the mindset that manufacturers can borrow from hospitality. He explains how to create lifelong fans of your brand, the true cost of negative reviews, and how the “recovery paradox” can help you turn negative reviews into something positive.  

We also hear his advice on creating memories as a business model, his advice for helping your team adopt the right mindset, and what he’s learned from the manufacturing industry.  

In this episode, find out: 

• Josh explains what he means by a “hospitality mentality” and why it applies to all different industries 
• We hear what led Josh to write his book 
• How you can apply the hospitality mentality to turn people into a customer for life 
• The true cost of negative customer reviews and how you can use them to your advantage 
• Josh’s advice for instilling the hospitality mentality in frontline staff in the manufacturing space 
• Josh shares his advice for creating “raving fans” 
• The top thing that has shifted in Josh’s mindset  
• Why we’re in the business of “creating memories” and how this can apply to manufacturing 
• What Josh has learned about manufacturing over the years 

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Tweetable Quotes: 

• “We've built into our culture service recovery. So not only are we canceling out a bad experience, we're regaining that satisfaction. We're regaining that trust, and in many cases, that leads to loyalty.” 
• “I treat every single guest as an influencer, whether they have 10 followers or 10 million, because people who are of the demographic of the business that you're talking about, they visit again or they do business with you again. They influence others to do business with you.”  
• “The way we remember something turns into our action in the future. It becomes the way we perceive what that experience was, and that perception determines our satisfaction or our dissatisfaction, and that determines how we then share and broadcast that experience with others.” 

Links & mentions: 

• The Hospitality Mentality, Josh’s book on how to create raving fans through your guest experience 
• Toons, Chicago's friendliest neighborhood bar  
• Attraction Pros, Josh’s podcast where the top leaders, executives, and influencers in the attractions industry share their advice and experiences.  

Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.