Y-FRONTS, mobile phones, and chicken crockpots – those are what fleets need to bear in mind when thinking of how to provide good customer service.

Peter Draper, former marketing director of Manchester United FC, gave several personal examples of great service aimed at encouraging fleets to think creatively when serving customers’ needs.

From a Hong Kong hotel that provided him with underwear when an airline lost his bag, to a kitchenware store that sent a replacement lid to a crockpot in a taxi to his home after the original broke, each showed how extra effort in enhancing customer experience can make a big impression and help win loyalty in a crowded marketplace.

He also recounted the tale of a Dubai hotel that, upon his early arrival, offered him a mobile phone so he could be told when his room was ready.

Draper stressed the importance of having a vision and mission for the business to attract the best possible people and then using technology to ensure they have the best support systems around them.

‘Think Y-fronts, mobile phones and crockpot, and try and take some of that into your business,’ Draper urged. ‘Customers will reward you for doing so.’