Zappos the game changer

Zappos the game changer

Last weekend I was fortunate to tour the headquarters of one of the most successful companies of the last decade, Zappos.com. Over ten years, Zappos went from zero to over $1.2 billion in sales. Over the past year, Zappos was acquired by a larger internet retailer for over $1 billion dollars.  They did all this by selling shoes on the internet, or did they? What can we learn from their success?

My first lesson -- don't listen to your friends.  Go out and follow your dreams.  Can you imagine how many people told the founders to give up trying to sell SHOES on the internet?  This company is a clear example to anyone who has a dream and is working hard to make it happen.  Don't stop.

Second lesson -- you can't just sell shoes on the internet.  Zappos doesn't see a shoe store, they are a customer service company that happens to have a good website with shoes on it.  Their written goal in every customer interaction is to get the customer to say "wow".  This is what keeps loyal customers, not cheap shoes.

Third, employees, the people at Zappos, are the $1 billion opportunity. Invest in people, stay interested in employees, create leaders, motivate, and reward people and you will make lots of money.  The energetic employees at Zappos are intensely focused on one thing -- making the customer happy (not selling the cheapest shoes).  That's what zappos does.

You put all those things together and you have a billion $ opportunity.

At Signature Community we see ourselves as a customer service company, not as a landlord.  Our goal is to keep residents for life and we know that the only way that will happen, is if our residents love us.

We understand at Signature, that residents have a choice and can find four walls and a refrigerator anywhere; but the sense of community at Signature Community, will not be replicated anywhere.  That's the Signature advantage.

Employees at Signature Community do have a very different life than our competitors. First we work harder, work smarter, and have more fun.  Take for example our interaction with residents. When a resident comes in with a problem or a payment issue, our goal is to solve their problem and get them to say "Wow", Signature cares".  The best example of this is our Signature Community Resident Works Program. When a resident falls behind on their rent we offer them a job based on their interest or specialties.  Currently we have residents working in sales, plumbing, carpentry, technology, and office help.  We even started a resident training program.  If this isn't stimulus, I don't know what is.

What makes Signature different and why do residents love Signature Community?  They don't live here because we have the prettiest kitchens or baths they live here because we are a Signature Community. Exactly, why people spend billions of dollars a year in shoes from zappos.

Thanks for making it happen at Signature Community. 

Nick