Years ago, I attended a seminar at which a consultant introduced the audience to the concept of the “Platinum Rule."
Most of us are familiar with the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
At the seminar, Dr. Alessandra introduced us to the concept of the Platinum Rule: “Do unto others as they would have you do unto them.”
The Platinum Rule builds on the Golden Rule by recognizing that we all have very different preferences. Said more simply, people may not like the same things you do. Give them what they like, not what you like.
Our company’s exposure to the Platinum Rule has come by watching truly great service companies capitalize by providing extraordinary experiences for their customers. This simple concept can make all the difference in the way a service provider designs and executes its product and service offerings. The focus shifts from “This is what I would want, so I’ll give it to everyone” to “First, I need to understand what customers want, and then I’ll give that to them.” The key is to listen and observe what a customer needs and then try to satisfy those needs.
Alfred B. Sloan, former chairman of General Motors, said it best:
“The quickest way to profits is to serve the customer in the way the customer wants to be served.”
At Mindshare, we provide automated customer feedback across more than 20 service industries, which gives us a front-row seat to a wide range of customer perceptions of service. In our experience, the practical application of the Platinum Rule of Service is fairly simple:
• Find out what customers want;
• Develop a way to give it to them;
• Monitor delivery to make sure they’re receiving it (e.g., real-time customer surveys);
• Make adjustments to improve operational execution (e.g., immediate training or process changes).
My favorite example comes from a Mindshare automotive repair client: “I won’t be returning to any of your stores. There was a stain left on my driver’s seat. Your people need to be more cautious of your customer’s property.”
In this case, the manager of the shop was able to save the customer by offering to have her seat professionally cleaned and giving her a free oil change. The key in this situation is not to let what is expedient in your business take precedence over what is important to your customers.
So, to sum up, the Golden Rule, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you," is an excellent rule for ethical treatment of others. But, the Platinum Rule, "Do unto others as they prefer to be done unto," is an excellent rule for providing tailored customer service offerings in a world of sameness.
Treat other people the way that they want to be treated, not the way that you want to be treated.
– By Richard D. Hanks, president, Mindshare Technologies
