The Confident Entrepreneur With Jennifer Ann Johnson

Beyond the Sale: How to Build a Brand Customers Love with Deanna Wallin

• Jennifer Ann Johnson • Season 3 • Episode 20

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What transforms a casual shopper into a loyal brand advocate? It all starts with the journey they experience the moment they engage with your business.

Deanna Wallin, founder of Naples Soap Company, takes us behind the scenes of her $12 million retail brand to show how intentional, detail-driven experiences earn long-term loyalty. From store music to the look and feel of product testers, every element is crafted to build trust and connection.

She shares real-world strategies like empowering local community involvement, training staff to embody brand values, and approaching customer complaints with empathy and flexibility. Her success proves that it’s not just what you sell—it’s how you make people feel.

Whether you're just starting out or scaling up, this episode offers practical insights on turning transactions into meaningful brand relationships.

Visit us at jenniferannjohnson.com and learn how Jennifer can help you build the life you dream of with her online academy, blog, one-on-one coaching, and a variety of other resources!

Jennifer Johnson:

You've heard the saying you never get a second chance to make a first impression. Well, in business, that first impression isn't just about a handshake or a smile. It's about the entire customer journey. In today's episode, we're going to explore why nailing your customer journey can be the difference between a one-time sale and a loyal, long-term client. We'll discuss how a well-crafted experience that your customer had can set the tone for your entire customer relationship, boost satisfaction and ultimately drive your business growth. Whether you're a seasoned business owner or just starting out, you'll walk away from this episode with actionable strategies to transform your customer experience from one simple welcome to a powerful tool for success. And today we welcome back into the studio Deanna Wallen with Naples Soap Company. Hi, Welcome back.

Jennifer Johnson:

Thank you for having me on the last time we talked about customer loyalty, which ties so closely with the topic of having that customer journey. You know from the minute the sights, the sounds, the smells, right From the minute they walk in. We're hoping they're not tasting your product.

Deanna Wallin:

I don't encourage it, although it has happened. It has happened, I've had people, yeah, weirdos. That was in the Key West store. Of course it was. That's a whole other show, that's another thing, yeah.

Jennifer Johnson:

We'll have to do that, like the after hours.

Deanna Wallin:

Yes, yes, retail location nightmares is what we're going to call that show.

Jennifer Johnson:

But, starting from the moment they walk in your door, what they see, what they smell, what they hear, and through the buying process and then through coming back again, it's all the customer journey. Right, absolutely, and that all fosters what you do there, fosters the loyalty that we talked about in the last episode, correct? So, in your opinion, why is creating a customer journey, the ideal customer journey, so important to a business? And to get it right.

Deanna Wallin:

Well, first of all, the competition is so stiff. Well, first of all, the competition is so stiff. I'm not referring just to competition In Naples Subcompany. We have 13 bath and body and personal care stores throughout the state of Florida. I'm not just talking about my competition with other personal care companies or Sephora, ulta, any of that I'm talking about competition for the dollar.

Deanna Wallin:

People are not spending like they used to. Inflation is high, so so you're competing with. You know I need to. You know I have to spend X, y and Z on this and it's costing me 30% more. Do I really need this? Um so so not just the. The competitive landscape has changed, so trying to get that dollar, it takes a lot more effort now for that. I'm a stickler for details and I find that when I go into a lot of other locations, a lot of details are overlooked, whether it is simple things like is your music going? Have you created an environment? I will stay in a store twice as long if I like the music that's playing. Yeah, is it tasteful?

Jennifer Johnson:

or is it really loud and obnoxious?

Deanna Wallin:

Yeah, Is it tasteful or is it offensive? And we have actually had situations where we had to terminate staff for changing music and we've had people complaining about. So we have a we use cloud cover and make sure that the that, that music, all the way down to that, is the employee. Are they dressed well? Are they do they? Or do they look like they just rolled out of bed? Um, you know, are they wearing offensive perfume or something to that effect? We have a no fragrance policy, believe it or not, at our company, at Naples soap company. Because Company, because I want the customer to experience the product, not what my sales associate is spraying on themselves heavily and, believe it or not, that's part of the customer experience. If I go somewhere and someone is selling me something and they're within, let's just say, two feet of my personal space, I'm a very hypersensitive person when it comes to odors and smells and things like that. I don't want to smell your lovely perfume or your body odor.

Deanna Wallin:

You're getting far away from me, no you're good today, today, wow, she just said today.

Jennifer Johnson:

Apparently, I wasn't when I saw her on Monday.

Deanna Wallin:

No, she always is. She's always great, but, but these are all details, they're details. When you walk in the door, you know what is the first thing that they see Is there are there trash cans that are empty? For us, we have testers of body butters and I don't know. We have 600 products and every one of them has a tester, like you would see in, like Ulta or Sephora. So the question is are the testers clean? Sure, because, ew right, gross, yeah, like no different if you would want to go into a restaurant and eat somewhere if the floor was dirty or if the tables were dirty. So for me, the journey really is about walking in and paying attention to the details, not just the how the staff is treating, but the presentation of the physical location. Is that is the first impression that they see, before any of your staff ever opens their mouth. If they walk in and there's a hodgepodge or there's stuff sitting up on the cash wrap.

Jennifer Johnson:

That drives me crazy. You actually mentioned something at the last podcast that we had about even the outside, if a light is a different color in your sign. Yes, it's that consistency.

Deanna Wallin:

So for me, it's details. I think the customer may. It depends on who the customer is. They may or may not notice those details, but if you execute consistently, that's what's familiar to them. You set a quality and standard for excellence and they expect that from you as a retailer. Because I, you know, sadly, retail has felt is failing us, Big box is failing us. Um, you know that I won't say who the major retailer was, but there's a major retailer that, um, you know, after COVID, I would go in and uh, let's just say it's in, like the Walmart target category, you know, like the large.

Deanna Wallin:

You walk in and it looked like had been looted. And this wasn't once or twice, this was ongoing. I understand short staffing, I understand, you know, not having enough people to stock, but when you walk in and they lost my business, they lost my business because if you're a floor manager or even a store manager and you walk through this store and it did not one area, multiple sections look like the store has been looted. Things hanging off of hangers all over the place, shoe boxes everywhere, Things hanging off of hangers all over the place, shoeboxes everywhere. I mean it was sad, very sad, and they lost my business.

Jennifer Johnson:

Well it sends the wrong message and you know, okay, yes, like you said, staffing shortage is all that, but you're the manager of the store, like, then it falls on you, it's your responsibility to make sure that it looks good for everyone.

Deanna Wallin:

Yeah, and I try not to be hypercritical, but I'm observant when I go into other retail everyone. Yeah, and I try not to be hypercritical, but I'm observant when I go into other retail and when I say retail is failing us as consumers, I I am speaking from that consumer perspective and, being a business owner and an operator, you know I make sure that we go above and beyond and that we're having those conversations with staff about the details, about the experience and that consistency and holding people accountable for your brand standards. That's it right. It is because you can. You can set brand standards, but if you're not holding people accountable, it doesn't matter. It's just paper, it's an HR book, it's a book. They stick it under the cash wrap and go. Yeah, I read, I read.

Jennifer Johnson:

I signed up. It's a book. They stick it under the cash wrap and go yeah, I read, I read, I signed up for it. It collects dust. I'm glad you mentioned brand standard. What do you think should go into having a brand standard Like is it three things, four things? Is it up to your brand Like what?

Deanna Wallin:

does that include? You know, I think really, what a lot of small businesses struggle with is their original brand identity. They may try something and it might not work, and then they change. We did this, I think we have, I think we've all done that, we have five different logos. You know, We've all done it.

Deanna Wallin:

But really, if you set out and you have a very clear vision, it makes it easier and less waste of money. So brand standards it's really like a lot of people look at where they are today and I've been the entrepreneur and the pioneer.

Jennifer Johnson:

Both.

Deanna Wallin:

I've got both badges. I think they look at where they are today without focusing on really where they want to go and seeing the vision. For where do you want to be five years, 10 years from now? And even though you might have a business plan on paper, what does the visual look like? What does the flow and function feel like? What does that feel like from a customer perspective, from an employee perspective, from your perspective as a brand owner or operator? So I really try to visualize the flow and function of something, not just writing it down on paper.

Jennifer Johnson:

Yeah.

Deanna Wallin:

You know we've got, we've got AI. Now it takes no, no time to throw a business plan onto paper, Right, but what is what? Does the execution look like? Is the execution consistent and that's one of the things that really bothers me, whether it's a restaurant or a retailer is the inconsistency? If it's in the food or the meal I order, you're going to lose my business. I want to know what I'm buying when I go in. Now I might order different dishes or whatever, but I want the service and the quality to be consistent and it's that what's familiar?

Jennifer Johnson:

again, it is. It goes back to that. I'm going to go where I and also where you feel like you are part, like cheers, I'm going to Norm at cheers Norm. Right. Granted. I understand the more stores you have and the bigger the stores are. That's hard to do, but it's important to at least acknowledge.

Deanna Wallin:

We have our Fifth Avenue store is a really interesting comparison to that. We have a gentleman that walks his dog every day and the dog drags him in to the store. The dog has outfits on. I love the dog. The dog is so gorgeous and the dog drags him into the store every day for her treat. Oh, because the dog knows they have treats.

Jennifer Johnson:

The dog knows they have treats.

Deanna Wallin:

And then on Fifth Avenue in Naples we have two pink rocking chairs, and those rocking chairs were at a restaurant that my dad and I had before he passed away, and they were the only two things I really have left from that. Honestly, I did not know that, those pink rockers. Yeah, so I have two pink rocking chairs. They weren't pink when my dad had them at his restaurant, so they came from northern Georgia. They were raw wood. I saved them and I said you know what? I want? To put something really bright and vibrant on Fifth Avenue, and so we sprayed them pink.

Deanna Wallin:

There is a couple that sits in front of our store every single day. They sit there. They are part of who we are. I walk by, speak with them. How are you guys doing? You feeling? Okay? Yeah, great, that is their spot and they've been married I don't know 200 years or something like that. They've been married forever. Yeah, they've been married forever and that is, they are happy there, they're comfortable there and they will sit there for hours on end and rock, and I don't even mind that they're taking up our chairs.

Jennifer Johnson:

See, so that's another part of your brand. Now I know it's part of your brand at that location. Yeah, Certainly they're comfortable there.

Deanna Wallin:

They sit and they people watch, and my staff knows the dog, my staff knows the couple that sits out front and and so it's about like being part of that community, you know. So we, we are part of the community and I one of the things that we also do is that, you know, being spread out, we're multi-unit retail and each store manager has their own budget, monthly budget, to donate back to causes within their area. So a lot of companies and we also have a budget where we donate and support. Philanthropy is a huge part of who we are. So we believe in giving back to the communities, not just taking.

Deanna Wallin:

So, like our corporate offices will do, large drives in February for American Heart Association. We do, life is why at all those stores. But each store manager has a budget to donate raffle items or support whatever cause. It's got to be a 501c3. But to give back to the community, and the community knows that in each of their locations, like I mentioned to you before, we've got an 800 mile footprint. Yeah, in florida and I'm a native floridian, I like to take care of my home state, I like to create jobs, I like to support our economy, but being part of the community is really important you and I.

Deanna Wallin:

We are chamber members, we are chamber, not just chamber members. Chamber not just chamber members. Chamber board members Talk about giving back to the community. That's a big commitment and when you're talking about, like, customer service, I think knowing what's going on in your community, if you have the ability, if you're a small business owner like getting involved with groups like that definitely gives you an advantage. You get to talk to other small businesses and you and I have started some retail networking groups as well together and even through the last few months you know we've, in the fall we had some hurricanes back to back, just being able to share information. So there's a lot of things that go into the customer journey as far as an owner goes, and my point with all the philanthropy conversation is that people know when they see you giving back in the community, it's about community.

Jennifer Johnson:

It is about community. I feel like that is part of that customer journey. Correct, they know they do. You're giving back to the community that gives to you every day by shopping in your store or eating at your restaurant or whatever it is. It's not just about taking from the community.

Deanna Wallin:

We turn around and we support the community and they know that they can count on us. People call me and I'll see my phone ring and I'm like uh-huh, what do you want? How can I help you? First it's what do you want. Then I flip this, which I go okay, how can I help you? You know, and that really is the important thing about, and that helps give that customer connection, because someone else may be a chamber member your customers that helps drive that customer loyalty.

Jennifer Johnson:

You know, something I wanted to touch on. So we've talked about every business. You have to have policies and procedures and you have to have rules the unfun stuff, the unfun stuff. And sometimes we have to relay that unfun stuff to our customers and that's a fine line. We've had that conversation many times. It's a fine line. But how does that fit in to the customer journey and how? You know? Again, it's about consistency. I know making sure that every location does it the same way. But you know, sometimes you have employees who see black and white. They never see the gray area.

Deanna Wallin:

Yeah, they're going to plant their stake in the ground and die on a hill.

Deanna Wallin:

And you're like okay, if you realized what my cost of goods was. On this whole argument, just settle it. I think you really have to choose your battles wisely. Um, I think if someone has a legitimate issue, um, it definitely warrants not only resolving the problem but going above and beyond, like a lot of times we'll. If someone has a legitimate issue and it was on us or something happened and it was our fault, we'll say, hey, you know what? Let us give you a gift card. Or let us give you something extra. Or, hey, I'm going to send you a gift set. You know owning it and taking responsibility. I think people appreciate that instead of just you know, not our fault.

Jennifer Johnson:

Combative.

Deanna Wallin:

Here's the fix, yeah. Because, a lot of customer service now because people have been so abusive with like return policies, you got to pick and choose your battles. If people are rude and nasty to my staff, you're not going to get a lot of cooperation from us. But if it's a legitimate customer service issue, we're going to go out of our way to make sure that you're happy.

Jennifer Johnson:

You know, and what I found in business is nine times out of 10,. You say to the customer what would you like us to do? And if you say that they're nine times out of 10, going to come back with something less than you are going to offer to begin with, A hundred percent.

Deanna Wallin:

Yeah, and then it also turns the table and it makes them feel more empowered. It does In the whole transaction. And if you're the business owner or the manager, look at the cost of goods and what really the issue is. I mean, obviously if you're dealing in computers and higher cost of goods but a lot of smaller retailers, you can afford to take the thing back or to fix the thing or to return the thing and you have to weigh out what that price of negative reviews is.

Jennifer Johnson:

But that's yeah and you have to weigh out what that price of negative reviews is, but that's yeah, Because you're $10 worth losing all these people that saw your bad reviews on Google. And again going back to Google, that's the one that people read.

Deanna Wallin:

They do, yeah, you can have 50 great reviews and one bad review and people be like oh yeah, but there's a one star here. Right, they got a one star.

Jennifer Johnson:

Isn't it interesting on Google and we find this with other platforms as well like it takes like 500 positives to move the needle one, but then you get a negative and it drops you like two points.

Deanna Wallin:

It's painfully unfair.

Jennifer Johnson:

You're like what the heck?

Deanna Wallin:

I just had to throw that out there.

Jennifer Johnson:

No, it's painfully unfair Kind of the elephant in the room when talking about Google.

Deanna Wallin:

Amazon's the same way. We have reviews. We have a review system on our website as well, and it's hard. It's hard to get people and we appreciate when they take their time to actually write a positive review and most of the time, what I have found out 99.9% of the time a negative review is not the situation, was not a legitimate situation or someone trying to game a system or you know, or even sometimes it could be a disgruntled employee or their friends or the boyfriend you name it.

Deanna Wallin:

Another business owner another business, competitive business, happened. Yeah, it's. It's hard and you know, you and I talk about this all the time. As retailers, we have to support each other, we have to share information, we have to talk and share what works and what doesn't work, and I'm really grateful to be on the podcast today.

Jennifer Johnson:

It's a lot of fun to be able to share this information with people Because, as small business owners, we feel like we're the only one going through this, and we're not. I mean plenty of people have gone down that road. It's not a new problem. Someone else had it somewhere down the line and if you just share it and help someone, that's going to come back to you tenfold, just like with your customer. You know your customer journey.

Deanna Wallin:

Right, and so if you think about this math on this, we are a very small publicly traded company. We are on the OTCQB and so our numbers are public, so I can talk about this. So we do 12 and a half million. Last year 12.3. We'll round it up to 12 and a half. About 2.3 of that was e-com, but our e-comm sales are higher. Our average e-comm order value is $75. In stores, our average order value is $45.

Jennifer Johnson:

Oh wow, why I really don't know.

Deanna Wallin:

Let's see there's some questions. All the trained sales associates I know. That's just been our metric for quite a while $45 to $50. That's just been our metric for quite a while, $45 to $50. But if you so, 13 brick and mortar stores doing $10 million a year at your average order of $50, that's a ton of transactions, that's a lot. So we're doing something right, we're doing a lot of things right, Because that is just mass volume of transactions on a daily basis, especially in fourth quarter. And to keep and we talked about this before consistency, you know, to keep the product consistent, to keep the experience consistent and to keep people coming back. Because guess what, the people that buy gifts for us from us, I want them to come back next year and buy their gifts. I want them to be rock stars when they put stuff under the tree.

Jennifer Johnson:

You know you do something really right. We were talking about community earlier and I first got introduced to your product. This was before I knew you, really knew you. Somebody had gifted me some stuff and I was like, so I used it. I'm like, oh, this is really nice. But then I went to another event and you had gifted items. Yes, and I think that's so crucial, that part of it, because if you don't, you don't know what you don't know, right, and you're gifted something from an event and that's your community involvement, right, you're going to go support those people.

Deanna Wallin:

I tell people I've made more money by giving product away than you can imagine. So this is funny. When I initially started out, we had two, maybe three stores and we used to run five green markets a week.

Jennifer Johnson:

What do you mean? Green markets Like farmer's markets, farmer's markets, yeah.

Deanna Wallin:

So we would go out. I didn't know that that would be me. I know I have so much respect for people that do this because it's torturous. It is. I've done them.

Deanna Wallin:

Yeah, the weather, you don't know. It's either hot in Florida or freezing, or I've had the wind rip my tents down. I mean, you name it. It happened right, I've had people back over my tent while I was in the tent. This is the true story.

Deanna Wallin:

But on days when it was really super slow, I couldn't sell anything and no vibe, no energy, no nothing. And I was like, okay, it's like Oprah's favorite things. I would start slicing soap and I'm like, oh and sir, and you get a soap, and you get a soap, and you get a soap, and you get a soap. I might've given away 50 to a hundred dollars worth of product. But guess what, when I went back the next week, half the people that were there because they come get their veggies every week they come back and they're like I tried that, that was really great, let me buy from you.

Deanna Wallin:

And so I took the time that we were invested there to still create a marketing opportunity, and that's six stores. We stopped doing the green markets, but that involvement, getting yourself out there, getting known in the community. That is part of that experience and that journey. So it's not just what happens in your four walls and you are so involved in the community. You do podcasts, you write books and you're very active on your social media. You know that is part of the customer experience too, like we have probably I don't know 40,000 people on Facebook. They see what we post.

Deanna Wallin:

Yeah, they do we have to stay regular with your posts, with your communications. We talked about doing letters from the CEO during COVID.

Jennifer Johnson:

So that communication is really important and when you involve your team it's even better. They love it, or you, they love that even more because they want that connection. Again, it still does tie back to that relationship.

Deanna Wallin:

Yeah, one of our best performing videos that we did, that we posted on social media, was me interviewing our Welland Park store manager, sam, and she ended up working for us because she bought product for her mother's eczema and skin condition. It worked so well. Her mother sent her back and she came in and she was like my mother said this is magic, what else do you have? And then, through her experience with us as a customer, she came to work for us.

Deanna Wallin:

Those are the unexpected, wonderful things that happened, and eventually worked her way up within a couple of years to a store manager. She runs our store in Venice, in Welland Park, and her family is like their family, feels like they're part of our family. So it's that's how you do it Connection, you do it right, yeah, and I love that.

Jennifer Johnson:

Anything else you want to add, anything we missed?

Deanna Wallin:

No, I mean, I really love being able to talk about connecting with the community.

Jennifer Johnson:

And that would be a great just one podcast.

Deanna Wallin:

We could do one podcast just on community outreach.

Jennifer Johnson:

Very much. That's huge, absolutely.

Deanna Wallin:

But I'm really grateful for the chance to talk today and share some wisdom. So if our listeners want to buy some Naples Soap Company products, how can they do that? They can go to wwwnaplessoapcom. That's N-A-P-L-E-S-S-O-A-P, naplessoapcom, and we've got all sorts of products on there. There's a deals page on there If you want to check out some of the deals. We've always running deals and promotions.

Jennifer Johnson:

And your almond is my favorite.

Deanna Wallin:

Thanks, is it?

Jennifer Johnson:

It's honey almond, honey almond.

Deanna Wallin:

It is like that's my number one soap.

Jennifer Johnson:

Love it, love it, love it, love it. Thank you.

Deanna Wallin:

Thank you so much again. Oh, my pleasure.

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