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"You Can't Learn from Haidilao" - Reflections on Emotional Management and Differentiated Service Strategy

　　1. Where to Break Through

　　1. Quality Has Limits

　　Improving product quality is the direction every company tries to break through. However, this is a one-way road. Improving quality comes at a cost; the higher the quality, the higher the cost. Moreover, every company claims their quality is the best, so who really is? There are too many sellers boasting, so consumers don't believe it.

　　From the consumer's instinctive reaction, being picky is a natural instinct. There is no perfect product in the world; no matter how well made, flaws can always be found.

　　To prevent customers from being overly picky about quality, consumers must genuinely like you from the bottom of their hearts—because if they like you, they won't look for faults. Why does love make one see only beauty? Because you like the person, you only see their strengths. Why do you tolerate your three-year-old child's mischief? Because you love them, you tolerate it. Quality is not our breakthrough direction.

　　2. Cost Has Limits

　　Controlling costs is the breakthrough direction for every company.

　　However, cost also has limits. Blindly pursuing cost reduction leads to cutting corners. Consumers are not afraid of expensive products; they fear poor quality. Controlling costs and improving quality are twin brothers in conflict: if costs are cut too much, quality is hard to guarantee; if quality is improved, cost control is difficult to implement. Finding a balance is very important.

　　Cost has limits and cannot be our breakthrough direction. Moreover, when consumers know your cost control is at a "stingy" level, they worry about the quality of materials used.

　　3. Service Has No Limits

　　Service is limitless. No matter how high the service quality you pursue, it won't require much capital investment but only each person being a bit more proactive and doing a bit more. Sweet words cost nothing; a smile brings business. Saying pleasant things with a smile doesn't cost us money but can satisfy customers.

　　When service is done differently, it becomes a service differentiation strategy and an irreplaceable core competitiveness. "Haidilao" is famous worldwide, impressing business school professors and attracting many companies to learn from it because of its service differentiation. Many competitors tried to poach Haidilao employees or go undercover but failed to replicate its core competitiveness. Haidilao originated in Jianyang and is not very well known in Chengdu because its taste is quite ordinary and not outstanding among Sichuan cuisine. However, it is famous elsewhere because its service is excellent. Many friends who know Sichuan cuisine told me: "Haidilao's taste is average, but the service is 'abnormal'; once you go, you want to go again." The core competitiveness of hotpot should be taste, but at Haidilao, it is service, so it stands out uniquely.

　　We, Qianchuan, want to be a first-class brand and cannot take cost control as the breakthrough point. We have surpassed many competitors in quality, but why are customers still not satisfied? On one hand, wooden products are hard to make perfect; even small bumps can cause damage; on the other hand, being picky is the nature of customers.

　　Why can't we take service as the breakthrough direction?

　　When our service is good enough, we become the "beauty in the eyes of lovers" and the "child in the eyes of parents"; even if there are some small flaws in quality, customers will understand.

　　2. Our "Gene"

　　Qianchuan's gene lies in its culture and the founder's philosophy. Through multiple communications with the chairman, it is deeply understood that Qianchuan's gene can be summarized as creating a family. The chairman's philosophy is that true good is when everyone is good, leading everyone to achieve a high-quality life together.

　　Only when employees are regarded as family can they see the company as home; when employees are happy, customers are happy; when employees are satisfied, customers are satisfied; when employees have good moods, product quality is guaranteed. These simple truths are all included in Qianchuan's gene.

　　However, obviously, in management, we have not successfully "inherited" this gene well. The chairman has repeatedly reminded that system management must combine with emotional management, and the general manager is also trying to explore the role of the labor union to grasp emotional management.

　　Of course, emotional management cannot be achieved by superficial or formal things; it must be realized through improving management mechanisms, by "inheritance" rather than "handover." 3. The Connection Between "Gene" and Breakthrough Point

　　1. Service Improvement Depends on Emotional Management

　　How to improve service quality?

　　Of course, it cannot be without systems and processes. But systems and processes alone can only achieve average service levels and cannot form a differentiated strategy. Under system and process management, employees' mindset is "the leader wants me to do it," "I have to do it." If we start with emotional management, making employees proud and happy to work, then their mindset becomes "I want to do it myself."

　　When an employee is always frowning, they definitely cannot smile at customers. When an employee is unhappy, they definitely won't care about product quality. Quality and service depend on every employee's words and actions; the level of quality and service is actually in the hands of employees, not managers.

　　We often hear: "I only do this much work for this little pay." This is not wrong. But no company can raise wages indefinitely due to cost pressures. However, emotional investment can continuously increase. When employees feel a sense of belonging and enjoy their work, they can accept lower pay.

　　2. Our Gene Supports the Breakthrough Point

　　Our gene is emotional management. Our breakthrough point is a service differentiation strategy. The management team sets the direction and tone, and all employees execute it. A certain hydropower construction company has annual revenue of hundreds of millions but no sales staff; it relies entirely on service quality to win reputation and business comes proactively. We need to reform management mechanisms, improve employee satisfaction, let every employee want to make the best product quality, provide the best service to customers, and treat themselves as "family."

　　A sense of belonging and being trusted are the two most important aspects of emotional management. These aspects cannot be achieved materially but must be realized through management mechanisms. When every employee is moved, they can exert their greatest creativity to move every customer.

　　4. What Should We Do?

　　1. First Learn from Others' "Appearance"

　　Learning is always the most important way to grow.

　　The first step requires all business, service, frontline sales and management staff, as well as distributors, to study Haidilao's service. Each person should have a copy of "You Can't Learn Haidilao." Distributors and their store employees must also study it. The books are purchased uniformly by the company.

　　The second step is to compare the cases mentioned in the book, combine them with your own position, and list how you can creatively provide service.

　　The third step is to summarize and discuss which points we can implement, and implement those that are feasible.

　　The fourth step is to send people to dine at Haidilao for on-site experience, and based on what they have learned, propose personalized requests to see how the other party meets them.

　　2. Then innovate your 'inside'.

　　Implement emotional management.

　　First, improve employees' living conditions;

　　Second, care about employees' thoughts and dynamics, care about employees' families, and plan employees' growth paths;

　　Third, let employees become the main characters in cultural activities;

　　Fourth, let employees participate in management decisions, encourage employees to innovate boldly, and tolerate mistakes;

　　Fifth, full trust.

　　Of course, what needs to be done goes far beyond the above. For employees, the concept we want to realize is "We are all one family." For customers, our concept is "Service without limits, love flows in Qianchuan."