The Power of Making Moments In Your Business (And A Few Ideas To Help You Do It)
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always loved making the most ordinary things feel EXTRAordinary.
So much so that I’ve always been the girl that people deemed “extra.” And to them they might’ve thought they were offending me, but I always took it as a compliment.
I’ve always loved going out of my way to make everyday moments feel special – you know, romanticizing things if you will. But I’ve been doing it wayyy before TikTok taught us to do it.
In my friend group, I’ve always been the celebrator. The girl that brings us all together for events and hang outs and makes SURE there’s a photo backdrop or a theme at least.
From game day cookouts and tailgates, to annual Galentines parties, Friendsgiving and Friendsmas, you name it, I’m making it a THING!
I’m a firm believer that everything deserves a proper celebration!
So much so that I once even brought my own balloons to set up a backdrop for my friend’s 21st birthday at a frat party in college…
I got some looks for that one. 😂
To some most people, it might seem like I’m trying too hard to be that picture perfect Pinterest person for alllll the things, but really it’s just something I do that brings me so much joy – almost like a hobby, honestly.
In fact, I love celebrating and making things extraordinary so much that I even made a side hustle out of it a few years ago with a vintage photo camper.
I did it with my sister and we called her Stella!
People could rent the camper for their events and we’d match their theme to create a fun backdrop!
I also created a newsletter for this business and called it – The Moment Maker Newsletter which aimed to help people celebrate and make moments with ease!
And even though I DID love doing it, this was my first lesson in not trying to make your hobbies a business. Now I know that not everything needs to be turned into something that makes money.
When I *had* to do it, I didn’t love it as much.
So now, the celebration vibes are back to being my favorite hobby!
In fact, as I’m writing this, it’s my 28th birthday week and I’ve spent the past few days prepping for my annual birthday party. 🎉🎈🎂🥂
For the past few years I’ve planned a fun celebration with the girls in my family and it’s my FAVORITE thing ever.
This year, I’m doing the coffee shop birthday trend where you turn your kitchen into a “coffee shop” – an elevated coffee and pastries morning if you will.
Because sure, you could get a box of donuts and brew a pot of coffee and call it a birthday breakfast and if that’s your vibe that is TOTALLY okay!
But me? I’m absolutely going to make it a moment.
There’s going to be a theme with cute plates, napkins, and cups. There’s going to be a photo op. There’s going to be a curated set up. And there’s even going to be an e-vite that I created on Canva because a regular text simply won’t do.
With celebration being such a core part of my life, I try to carry that same energy into my business too! And one of my most favorite books that I’ve ever read to help me do this (and show the importance of it) is The Power of Moments.
It’s SUCH a good read, so I highly encourage you to add it to your TBR, but the main point of the book is how brief, memorable experiences, or "defining moments," shape our lives.
Throughout the book, the authors tell stories of companies who intentionally create and shape defining moments in order to wow their customers and keep their loyalty.
Keyword there being INTENTIONAL – which just so happens to be another core value of mine!
Not only do they walk you through different examples of companies that do this well, but they also guide you through the four elements for YOU to be able to do the same – elevation, insight, pride, and connection.
While some moments will of course happen naturally, there are other powerful moments that you can engineer and the book walks you through strategies to do just that, both personally and professionally.
One of the things that they talk about in the book that I always think about is how people are willing to forget a lot of bad things, in return for moments that are remarkable.
In fact, they say that when people assess an experience, they rate that experience based on two key points: 1) the best or worst part of the experience - this is known as the peak and 2) the ending.
After reading this book, the thing I found most interesting is that in society we’ve been trained to solve problems, NOT create moments.
And the only problem with that is that solving problems doesn’t actually make people more happy - it simply makes them content.
Because think about it: when something works like it’s supposed to or you receive the service you’re supposed to receive, you aren’t typically overly excited about it. It’s just what you expect.
For example, when you go to a restaurant, you expect to receive great service. You want to be greeted quickly, your server to be professional and prompt, your order to be correct, your food to be delicious and your drink to be refilled without having to ask.
Those are all things you expect. But when the server takes everything up a notch by providing some sort of experience that isn’t required, that’s when you’re like, “Wow! That was remarkable.”
You see, too often leaders will spend so much time “filling the pits” (that’s what the book calls solving problems) and work toward achieving a complaint free service, instead of ever focusing on creating peaks (aka remarkable moments).
When I think of a company who has gone far beyond filling the pits, I can’t help but think of Chick-fil-A. Almost every time you go there, you get some sort of remarkable experience and that’s why people are so obsessed with the place.
Well, as a business owner, YOU have the opportunity to be the Chick-fil-A of your industry by creating peaks (instead of just filling the pits) for your potential and current clients/customers.
Ways To Create Special Moments For Clients In Your Business
Sure, the systems you implement might be cool and keep you organized, but is that where the majority of your time should go? Is there a way you can get those systems functioning 80% and then move your focus to creating a remarkable moment for your people?
It’s easy to get caught up in the backend systemizing of things, but that’s not where the real magic happens. The real magic happens when people are “wowed” by things they would never expect! 💫
How you do it will look different from how I do it or how your business bestie does it and that’s the point. It’s a ✨MOMENT✨ that’s unique to you, that people can’t get anywhere else.
If you struggle with ways to incorporate celebration and moment making into your business, here’s a quick list to get your mind thinking on the right track:
A special onboarding gift to show them how excited you are to be working together
For example, I know that Your Numbers Gal sends her people a box of Jeni’s ice cream! And the only way I know that is because I’ve seen multiple clients of hers post about it on Instagram.
It’s a unique MOMENT that she’s created in her business that surprises people enough that they can’t help but talk about it. And now, I’m telling you about it – and what’s crazy is that I don’t even work with her! But if I ever find myself needing an accountant, I’ll remember her!
Same for offboarding - something to show your appreciation for them choosing you to work with you
For example, when I worked with Nicole for my rebrand, she sent me a personalized mug with my new logo on it! It was such a sweet surprise to receive in the mail and it’s my favorite cup to sip coffee out of.
A birthday gift or card - I still believe in the power of snail mail!
I’m a bigggg birthday girl, so I think it’s only right to know and acknowledge client’s birthdays! Even if it’s not in the budget to send something every year, having their birthdays saved and making an intentional effort to wish them a good one goes a long way.
A personalized welcome or thank you email
In the world of automation, people expect the general “welcome, we’re glad you’re here!” or “thanks for purchasing” email, but can you imagine how much a personalized email would stand out?
And no, I’m not talking “personalized” in the sense of “Hey [name]” that all of the email marketing platforms let you do.
I’m talking about a REAL personalized email from your Gmail account that contains a message that was specifically crafted for them!
Again, how you do it should be unique to you and your business, but the whole point is for your clients or audience to feel like you really go the extra mile.
Small gestures really do make the biggest difference!
So, I’d love to know - do you have unique ways that you bring celebration into your business? Let me know if so! If not, I hope this blog post gives you the push to start and provides a few ideas to help you do so with ease.
New to my world? Nice to virtually meet ya. 👋 I’m Natalie, but everyone calls me Natty (you can too) – blog and email writer for creative business owners and service providers.
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