A little something extra; Pandemic Thought for the Day

Lagniappe: def - a little something extra (pronounced lan-yap). I love this Cajun term. Lagniappe is often used in Louisiana culture to express a form of personal or professional hospitality. Think about it; how does your business or service provide customers a little something extra?

There’s an important factor of lagniappe you should know about; it should be unexpected. You get chocolate covered espresso beans with your check, you get that dashboard wipe at the car wash, you get a lollipop at the doctor...those are all expected. You order a coffee and get a muffin “WOW”, you buy a couch and get an ottoman “WOW”, you go to a hotel and get upgraded to a suite “WOW”... I think you get it.

So, what can you surprise your customers with? That’s up to you...and make sure it has some value that is meaningful to them. A few pennies or percentage points now may come back in double digit growth later. Remember lagniappe is a sincere surprise of ‘something extra’ and it need not be every day, every purchase and always the same thing. You don’t want to be like the dashboard wipe at the car wash because when you don’t provide it anymore it will reflect back on your business.

So, go ahead and have some fun and surprise your customers...they’ll remember it!