Why are Greeks masters of experience marketing?

I saw a tweet lately saying a marketer's brain never switches off. Well… I might be the best proof of that. I spent the 2nd week of September in 2 beautiful places in Greece.

And let me tell you — I've learned more about the experience in marketing than I'd ever in any online course. So, I broke down my notes into 3-part series of blog posts. You'll find tactics easily transferable to your product or service marketing here.

But first… let me tease you with this photo:

If you care about your customers — show it.

I want to begin with a big (and well-deserved) shoutout to Evie.

Evie is a proud owner of Nesea — 5 charming, cozy apartments on Hydra and rents them to everyone who wants to rest during their time off.

She could give us a key to our room and forget about us for the rest of our stay there.

But she knows damn well her job doesn't end there. That's why, when you rent an apartment from Evie, you get a top-tier experience. And it starts once you put your foot on the island.

She will pick you up from the harbor. Then she takes you on a quick tour around. And after that, she delivers her favorite restaurants, bars, beaches, and secret places around the island to your Whatsapp inbox.

Does it get better than that?

Yes, it does.

When she welcomes you to your room, she repeats several times: "If you ever need me, just call or text me."

You may think: "yeah, everyone says that."

But not everyone responds in 10 minutes max. Not everyone wishes you a great day on the island after answering your questions.

Evie is not like everyone. That's why I began this blog post with the story about her impeccable customer service in the first place.

The other reason (and more critical probably) is the lesson Evie taught me during my stay on Hydra:

When it comes to customer experience: show — don't tell.

She didn't spit out some meaningless phrases about "being here to help." Instead, she told us:

• HOW can we contact her
• WHEN she's available
• WHERE can we find her if she won't answer

After that, we knew what to do and how the process worked. It makes contact frictionless and efficient — for both sides.

What she didn't tell us, however, is how fast she's going to respond. She didn't brag about her impressive response rate of 10 minutes avg.

Don't get me wrong — it's madly impressive. But it wouldn't be if I'd heard about it first.

Why? Because of expectations.

Once I'm presented with a certain number or statistic, I get clung to it and expect AT LEAST an average experience.

And what if something goes wrong and Evie cannot answer my calls? I'd be displeased, even if just subconsciously. I'm not a Karen in any way, and my reason would try to find an explanation for this situation. However, that's a mental challenge I'm not willing to take up during my holidays.

So, another lesson here:

Be careful while presenting a customer with a statistic or an impressive number. It builds expectations, and you risk losing customers' trust if you don't meet them.

Last thing before I move on to another beautiful person I met on Hydra. If you happen to spend your next holidays on Hydra — here's all you need to know about Nesea Apartments. Let's make this fantastic, hard-working woman's day better 😊

Small efforts → Big results

Greek cuisine is tasty AF.

This is why I always had a wonderful time visiting several restaurants in Athens and Hydra.

But 1 place stood out the most. And the reason wasn't so apparent even to me at first.

When you're on Hydra, go a bit off the beaten track and explore all the small, charming streets around the island's harbor. We decided to do that during our 1st day on the island, and we had an opportunity to find a real gem:

This is Giasemi — a cozy, warm restaurant with food you won't find anywhere else on the island. A lovely Greek family runs the place, and they don't have to tell you that — the atmosphere of hospitality and honesty makes this restaurant glow.

Once you sit there, you're welcomed by the head chef herself. She brings you the menu and informs you about today's specials. It might not seem so unusual — yet it's done in such a way that 10x your hunger. And it made us choose the specials each time, so — it's probably working wonders.

But still — nothing special, right?

Wrong. This was the only time during our 7-days stay in Greece a head chef came to greet us and talk to us about her work. It's a small gesture, but it makes the experience much more personal and feels like we're coming to a family dinner (and an enjoyable one in this case!).

Of course, this whole concept wouldn't be as effective if the food wasn't good. And let me tell you — it was MARVELLOUS. I hadn't tasted such a good lamb ever in my life before. Just look:

So, if we were to translate it into marketing jargon, we would break it down like this:

• We got the EXPERIENCE: the head chef made us feel welcome.
• Then we heard the PROMISE: after we heard what's been cooked today (and how fresh it was), we couldn't resist but pick it.
• Lastly, the restaurant delivered the RESULT: cause the food was nothing but perfect.

You can use this strategy in your product's marketing as it is. But remember, when the promise is made, you must deliver the results.