Lagniappe: A word worth traveling for.

In my previous post, I suggested that you give each client a little something extra. In Louisianna and other parts of the south, this extra something is called lagniappe. Mark Twain writes about the word in a chapter on New Orleans in Life on the Mississippi (1883). He called it "a word worth travelling to New Orleans to get":

We picked up one excellent word — a word worth travelling to New Orleans to get; a nice limber, expressive, handy word — "lagniappe." They pronounce it lanny-yap. It is Spanish — so they said. We discovered it at the head of a column of odds and ends in the Picayune, the first day; heard twenty people use it the second; inquired what it meant the third; adopted it and got facility in swinging it the fourth. It has a restricted meaning, but I think the people spread it out a little when they choose. It is the equivalent of the thirteenth roll in a "baker's dozen." It is something thrown in, gratis, for good measure. "

Lagniappe is foolproof way of making your clients feel good. My friend of many years, Vic Wolf, is the owner of a hair salon in Portland. Every once in a while he will give his clients a free bottle of shampoo or a hair brush or other grooming accessory. This giving is returned to him many times over in the form of incredibly loyal customers who are generous with their tips. Those who go to other salons may feel they got their money's worth but those who leave Vic's salon leave feeling they got more than their money's worth. How would you like your clients to feel?

Give great service. Then give a little something extra, a little lagniappe!

Give a little more during tough times

There is no doubt that almost all Americans are feeling the economic squeeze. Times are tough. Our clients are feeling the squeeze and cutting back on their treats and luxuries. She is down-scaling her expectations. As a marketer you have to ask yourself, how does this make her feel? Indulging in small and large treats is one of the ways she builds self esteem. 

As Faith Popcorn wrote during the last recession: "The good news for marketers: the worse it gets, the more we need them, these little life-enhancing, get-us-through-the-tough-time-lifts."

Right now our client needs those little extras to make her feel better about the tough times and to feel good about herself and more hopeful for the future.

What might these extra lifts look like? We have talked about them in earlier blogs: fresh brewed coffee and warm chocolate chip are enough to lift the spirits of any client. Some of my clients have added the TGIF wine and cheese on friday afternoons. Bring in a masseuse once a month and have her give clients a neck and shoulders massage while the are waiting. There are also advertising specialties that are inexpensive, yet do a nice job of branding: pen and notepads for her shopping lists, squeeze balls to relieve stress and increase fitness, cool drink holders, etc etc.

Even the extra effort to put out fresh flowers and upbeat music will help.

Those little extras can make all the difference in your client's outlook as she navigates her way around the difficulties we all face today.