June 03, 2025

Why Happy Employees Mean Happy Customers Featuring Ryan Minton

31 minutes

How Positive Leadership Transforms Workplace Culture and Elevates Customer Experience

Shep interviews Ryan Minton, Best-Selling Author and Keynote Speaker. He talks about his new book, Uplifted and shares insights from his experience in hospitality, including the impact of employee engagement, appreciation, and empowerment in creating uplifting work environments and better customer experiences.

This episode of Amazing Business Radio with Shep Hyken answers the following questions and more:  

What practical benefits come from creating an uplifting workplace culture?

How does a hospitality mindset improve customer service across different industries?

What impact does leadership have on employee morale and customer experience?

How does positive leadership help reduce staff turnover in customer-facing roles?

In what ways does an employee's mood affect customer interactions?

Top Takeaways:  

The hospitality mentality is not just for hotels and restaurants. It is valuable in every industry because it sets the bar for the customer experience standard. It teaches every employee to always show care, gratitude, and kindness no matter what industry they work in.

A heartfelt "thanks for coming in today" can make a real difference in someone's mood and attitude. It is a simple yet powerful statement that leaders can say to make their employees know that they matter. When employees feel appreciated, they're more likely to enjoy coming to work and give their best. It creates a workplace where people want to come, stay, and grow.

Every employee becomes the face of your brand the moment they interact with your customers. When they are not happy at their jobs, customers feel it. High turnover and unhappiness can hurt customer satisfaction, so making sure that employees are engaged, equipped, and fulfilled helps create positive customer experiences.

Strict policies can sometimes get in the way of the human aspect of customer service. When employees are trusted to handle situations as they see fit, they feel empowered to do their jobs. Employees need to grow through training and be equipped with the right tools so that they can use policies as guidelines while exercising common sense to meet each customer's unique needs.

Happy employees lead to happy customers, and happy customers come back. Invest in people through appreciation, empowerment, and uplifting leadership.

Loyalty programs and perks can encourage repeat business, but truly memorable companies don't rely on them alone. Being helpful, friendly, and uplifting is the best loyalty program you can offer. When people feel good about you, they'll keep coming back, with or without loyalty programs.

Plus, Ryan shares the "balloon effect" and how it can elevate customer and employee experiences. Tune in!

Quote: 

"Good old-fashioned customer service is just good old-fashioned hospitality. So many brands look to the hotel industry because it has become the standard for customer service."

About:  

Ryan Minton is a Best-Selling Author and Keynote Speaker with over 20 years of experience leading world-class hospitality brands. He is the author of Thanks for Coming in Today: Creating a Culture Where Employees Thrive & Customer Service is Alive. His upcoming book Uplifted! The Remarkable Power of Positive Leadership on Frontline Teams launches June 10th.

Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio.  

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By Shep Hyken & C-Suite Radio

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