We can all learn a thing or two from the Zappos model.  They are one of the most talked about companies today because they do things right.  What do I mean by right?  I mean that they take care of their customers and they take care of their employees.  As a result, people talk about them…lots of people.  Just a couple of examples:

- A woman called Zappos because her mother died and had a few unopened Zappos shoes boxes.  The daughter called Zappos and they immediately said that they would be happy to take the shoes back and would arrange for the pick up.  At this point, we are all thinking that this is standard, good customer service.  However, a week later the daughter received a bouquet of flowers with a note that read “We’re so sorry for your loss – the Zappos team”.  The daughter turned out to be an influential blogger and this story was widely circulated (as I’m circulating it here).

Lesson:  Let your employees go above and beyond to do what is right.  Don’t just provide client service, provide exceptional client service and people will talk about it.

- Zappos now pays its employees $2500 to quit.  If, after an extensive training program, anyone feels that they cannot provide the level of service expected, they are offered $2500 in addition to the time worked to quit.  The company used to pay $250, then $1000, and now $2500.  I would surmise that Zappos easily makes back this money several times over by not only having employees that really want to be there but by also showing their customers that they have policies that put the customers first.

Lesson: Follow the word of mouth marketing mantra: Make your company remarkable and people were remark on it.  Stories like these make people even more likely to become clients because they like what you stand for.

Read more about Zappos in a recent AdWeek interview with Zappos CEO, Tony Hsieh.