What does it actually take to build a business where your customers keep coming back, no matter what you put in front of them? Where loyalty isn't earned once, it's sustained over time. And where growth doesn't slow down when things get hard, it accelerates. What could we possibly learn about business from someone who's done all of this? Like Taylor Swift has. More than you might think. And that's what we're diving into in today's conversation.

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If you're leading sales, marketing, or growth in the contract interiors industry, you already know this work can feel isolating. So that's why we built the Collaborative Network. It's a peer-driven community for manufacturers and leaders who want real conversations, real accountability, and practical insight, not generic advice. No posturing, no sales pitches, just experienced people working through real challenges together. If you're ready to grow smarter, check us out at thecollaborative.network.

Welcome back or welcome to the Turned Report, your inside look at the people, products, and ideas shaping the future of workplace design. I'm your host, Sid Meadows, and I'm glad that you've joined me for another conversation with just me and you. Yeah, I know. You're thinking Taylor Swift, Sid. Come on. What can we learn from the biggest pop star in the world? Before you dismiss this, stay with me because if you can get past your opinion of the person, regardless of what that is, and look at the business behind her, there is a lot that we can learn here. Recently I was out on one of my morning walks listening to one of my favorite podcasts, Finding Mastery with Dr. Michael Gervais. We'll drop a link to it in the show notes. His guest was Kevin Evers, who wrote the book There's Nothing Like This, The Strategic Genius of Taylor Swift. Together, they broke down the strategy behind what she's built, not the music, but the business. And there were three things that immediately hit me as lessons every leader should be thinking about, especially today. Number one, adversity. Number two, customers, and number three, team. So let's get into it.

Turning Adversity Into Momentum

Adversity. We all experience it. It happens, and goodness knows she's had her share of it. Public criticism, ownership battles, industry pressures, but here's the difference. She uses as for adversity as fuel, not as an excuse. So here's the real question that leaders should be asking. Are you using adversity to accelerate your growth or is it slowing you down? Most businesses hit resistance and immediately go into protection mode. They pull back, they play safe. But what if that moment is actually the opportunity? What if the thing you're dealing with right now is the exact thing that could move your business forward if you leaned into it instead of away from it? For example, maybe you lost, uh just lost a major account or a relation, a relationship that you've had for years. And I'm sure that you've been in this situation at some point in your career, because I know I have. That's when most businesses go into recovery mode. They try to replace that revenue as fast as possible. And I understand why. But what if that moment is actually the real opportunity where you need to have a conversation with yourself and with your team and do a deep dive on this and first and foremost, understand why did we lose this customer? What happened? What went wrong? Where did we go wrong? And once you understand what went wrong and what you learned from this, now is the time to truly reassess your value, refine your positioning, and build a stronger, more diverse pipeline and a lot more things. But I would also say at some point, you should go back to that customer. Don't go back to them like they're a lead or a new opportunity. Go back to them as a relationship. And depending on who they are, leaning into that relationship could actually build momentum for you and your organization. What I might recommend here is that you go back to them and you say, hey, I realize that we didn't win your project, but I know you worked really long and hard on this, and I would love to come for a tour and see how the facility turned out. And while you're there, praise them, praise how great the space looks and congratulate them on what they accomplished. What you're doing here is continuing to build the relationship with that particular customer because they're going to need something in the future, and hopefully you'll be at the top of their list and might learn a few things from them about why they decided to go a different

Loyalty Beats Price And Product

way. All right, number two, customers, or in her case, fans, and let's be clear, raving fans. But she knows her audience, and more importantly, they love her. Whatever she puts out, they show up. They buy it, they support it, and they keep coming back again and again and again. That's not marketing, that's loyalty. So ask yourself this do your customers feel that way about you and your business? Do they come back to you no matter what? Do they advocate for you when you're not in the room? If the answer is no, friend, please understand why the answer is no. And the next thing is, what are you doing to build that level of connection with your customers? You know, in today's market, loyalty truly is the competitive advantage, not price, not product. It's connection and connection with your customers. So here's an idea for you.

Simple Ways To Deepen Connection

I want you to think about something as simple as hosting a Jefferson-style dinner. I've talked about this a couple of times before on the show, but this is where you bring together a small group of clients or influencers, A and D firms, and you bring in a guest speaker. Maybe you have a conversation that has nothing to do with furniture, your business, or specifically about a project. You could have a conversation about a topic like the future of the workplace or AI in the workplace, or understanding Enneagram and how it impacts businesses. There's so many topics that you could come up with to have this Jefferson style dinner. And I'm sure that if you got your team together, you could come up with a whole host of ideas. You know, another idea might be to host a small roundtable in your office. Maybe do a behind-the-scenes tour of your facility where you're not pitching, you're just showing what happens behind the scenes. People love an inside look at businesses to get a glimpse of what's happening when you pull back the curtain. Another idea might be to have a conversation around trends your clients are trying to understand today. And there's a long list of those for sure. But the point of this is there's no pitch, there's no product, and there's really no agenda. Just create a space for ideas, connection, and providing value to the customers and to the influence. That's not selling, that's building loyalty. The point is you're showing up in a way that supports them versus trying to sell to them.

We'd like to thank our supporting Silver sponsors, KISP, who helps furniture brands visualize and sell products before specification. Navitas Credit Corp. Navitas makes great workspaces affordable, turning furniture projects into easy monthly payments. Web Configurator Services, the leader in AI-powered online product configuration and quoting.

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Build A Team That Elevates

Now the third one is team. This is really all about the people that you surround yourself with. You understand the importance of your team. And listen, Taylor doesn't do anything that she does on her own. She is not alone. She has a team and a massive team. And it's not just a team. She has a group of loyal people that surround her. People that take care of her and that she takes care of. You might remember hearing a news story back when she was doing the Ares tour. Sometime around the holidays in December, she pulled everybody on her team together and she gave everyone on her team, including those people that drive the trucks from location to location with all of the gear that they need. She gave them each a six-figure bonus. She has people who believe in what they're building together, and that matters. And she leans into that and rewards them for all their hard work. Because no business grows without the right people in the room. Doesn't mean you have to give them six-figure bonuses. There's a lot of things that you could do to support your team that are not monetary related, right? But here's a question for you Do you have a team that's helping you grow your business? Or are you trying to carry it all yourself? Because the right people don't just support the work, they elevate it. Think about your team for a minute. Most leaders expect their team to execute, hit the number, do the work, deliver the results, all of which are important. But the best teams don't execute, they think, they challenge ideas, they contribute, and they help shape the direction of the business. And that only happens when leaders create the space for it. When you invite your team into the conversation, not just after decisions are made, but while they're being made, that's when the magic actually happens. Because people don't just stay loyal to a job, they stay loyal to something they feel a part of.

Three Questions To Lead By

So here's my challenge for you right now, friend. Where are you facing adversity right now? Are you leaning into it or are you letting it slow you down? Are you creating moments that build real loyalty with your customers? Or are you just focused on the next transaction, the next sale? And are you building a team that simply executes or one that actually helps you think and grow? Because those are the things that separate good businesses from great ones. You don't have to be a fan of Taylor Swift to take something from her or from this episode. That's not the point. The point is stay open and recognize that some of the best business lessons are right in front of you if you're willing to look for them.

We'd like to thank our community bronze sponsors, Catalyst Consulting Group, RESEAT, and Staffing Plus.

Hey, thanks for joining me today on the Trend Report, your inside look at the people, products, and ideas shaping the future of workplace design. I hope you got some amazing value out of this conversation and go out there and make today great. And we will see you in the next episode. Take care, everyone.