Average Rating: 
Rating:  - A fan but not a raving one
Raving Fans is a decent business text and a nice break from some of the more academic titles out there. Like most Ken Blanchard titles, the book is a very easy and quick read. Its value for the time invested is therefore good (but not great).The most important teaching from this book was that you can't settle for simply "satisfied" customers. Service expectations are often so low that people claim to be satisfied when indeed they are not. This leaves you vulnerable to any competitor that merely raises the bar on service. This is not rocket science. Like the rest of the book, the advice given is practical albeit simplistic. Raving Fans suffers from a lack of real-world examples. The fictional stories are handy for getting one to think about creative service ideas. Unfortunately, there is a lack of supporting details to show how these ideas translate to profitability. You can't grab onto these ideas and say to a doubting associate; "Of course this can work. This is just how (insert name of real business here) did it!" If you don't have much time to read about customer service ideas, I would pass on this book and go directly to Carl Sewell's book "Customers for Life". Sewell owns a real business and discusses the real-world issues of increasing customer service levels including compensation incentives, costs, service abuses and bottom line results. I felt that Sewell's book was a much better value for the time invested.
Rating:  - IT Professionals should read this NOW
The new Area Manager is wondering on what could be done to retain his customers and his job. Just then a fairy godmother "Charlie" appears and takes him around to businesses that create raving fans through exemplary customer service. Let us take the case of a visit to a departmental store. Our Area Manager is looking for a book to be gifted to this wife on her birthday. Upon arrival he and Charlie are greeted by the sales staff who pin a complimentary white carnation on their suits. The store has a superb play area for children. The rest rooms are glittering and the towels are neat and crisp. The book he is looking for is not available at this store but the lady at the books section dispatches her assistant to procure it from a neighboring shop, gift wraps it and hands it over to her customer - at no extra cost. Our Area Manager is amazed. How can they afford to do this? Pat comes the reply from the man who runs the business - How can you afford NOT to do this?.
Charlie takes our Area Manager for golf in between visits to several such places of excellence. They come up with three simple but important principles to create RAVING FANS. This book applies to all businesses. Take the case of the IT industry. Technocrats who focus more on technology than on their customers staff this industry. Till recently, thanks to the global shortage of well-trained professionals in this area, a streak of arrogance and sharp edges were common traits. "We are knowledge Workers - Stock Options and hefty salaries are our birthright" was a common belief in this tribe. Suddenly, the IT industry finds itself swamped by competition and surplus people. Many companies whose stock prices pierced the roof a couple of years ago find themselves in Chapter 11. Customers have won again. They now exercise their choice and demand value for money- not just tech talk by smart yuppies. As in any other industry, only those companies that ensure stellar customer service at all levels of the Organization will be able to succeed. To all those who need to understand these core values I recommend this book.
Rating: - Raving Fans: One piece of the excellence puzzle
Raving fans is the story of a manager that finds himself in charge of a failing department. He is given the position with the understanding that he HAS to fix things, and fix them quickly. To the rescue comes his "fairy godmother" Charlie-a guardian angel with a penchant for golf and a great deal of information about how to make customers more than satisfied.Through this parable the manager and the reader learn there are three rules for making your customers "Raving Fans". First, decide what you want. Second, discover what the customer wants. Third, deliver plus one. Ken Blanchard and Sheldon Bowles have done an excellent job of boiling down excellent customer service to its essence. The rules are easy to read and simple to understand. But, like most things of consequence they will take time to master. This book is well worth the hour or two it will take to read. However, delivering excellent service is only part of the equation. To have a truly profitable well-run organization you also need to have excellent leadership, a highly motivated team, and value-driven goals. While this book touches on these subjects it certainly doesn't do them justice. For a clearer picture I would also recommend reading "Gung-Ho!", "Leadership By The Book", and "The One Minute Manager" -all part of Ken Blanchard's library of leadership materials. All of them are quick reads, and amazingly informative. Together they create an excellent picture of how a successful, value-centered organization should be run.
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