If you’ve ever switched credit cards, you probably know how easy it is to neglect one auto-charge, which I did. WARNING! WARNING! The emails flew in. My service will be discontinued if I don’t immediately provide a valid credit card number. So I log in to provide a valid credit card number. WARNING! WARNING! We are experiencing difficulties. Try again later. Once again, a service provider leaves the monkey on my shoulder. I don’t approve of making customers work so hard to hand over their money. I also don’t approve of threats of service loss, especially for $4.16. Do you improve your customer’s condition or add to their stress and workload? Not sure? I’d be glad to help you answer that question! Call me at 800-527-0087.
I need to make some changes to my website and have wanted to for about a year. I won’t go into the reasons for my inaction because that is not the point of this post. Right now, there are three emails from three different web developers, all known to me, in my inbox. One arrived just this afternoon. One has been there for quite awhile. Since I generally keep my inbox pretty much empty, the presence of these three is evidence of desire, need, and indecision. This decision is obviously not a top priority right now, but the inbox is proof that I don’t want to put it off completely. So there they sit. Meanwhile, three developers are missing a great opportunity. A simple phone call instead of an email would give any one of them the opportunity to hear, “Actually, I would like to talk about my website.” But they emailed instead of calling. So there they sit. Pick up the phone! When you write an email you are only tilting at windmills. Your written words are all guesses and you learn nothing. It takes just a few words on the phone to figure out where things stand. Why would you want to do it any other way?
I got a call today from Comcast, or at least that is what the “800 Service” caller said following the post-hello pause indicative of an unwanted call. Any doubt was confirmed when my name-mangling meter hit an all-time high and shattered. The caller proceeded to mumble something about Xfinity bundles and home security. With the strikes-against mounting, I was thinking that it would take a miracle to turn this call around. A tiny hint of WIIFM was way overdue and had to be coming. That’s when he asked the stupid question instead. “Do you have a home security system?” “Why, no! Would you like to know when we will be gone next too? Perhaps it would be easier for you, and easier on my light carpets, if I just gave you my bank account information.” If your goal is to catapult yourself from interruption to scammer, I can’t think of a better question to ask than “Do you have a home security system?” So yes, there are stupid questions and if you ask them, you will kill the sale. An 800 Service caller could be anyone. The person you are calling doesn’t know you and has little reason to believe anything you say. You simply can’t ask prying questions. You can create interest and provide value. If you make an offer, the benefit must exceed the risk, including the risk of dealing with an unknown. Put yourself in the recipient’s shoes. Would you be comfortable? More important still, don’t use the same people Comcast did to train your sales team! Comcast provided this caller with poor advice, poor training, or both. Oh, and don’t call late at night, early in the morning, during meals, when I am working, or on the weekend!
I discovered this brilliant poster at the Northampton Survival Center this evening and it could not have been more timely given the continued need for Hurricane Sandy relief along with the many pleas for support that accompany the holiday season. If you are worried about your donations being used appropriately, you may shy away from giving money. If you want to be as helpful as possible, you might rally your friends and collect a heap of canned goods and blankets. Or maybe you just feel better, more connected, and more invested when you turn over a big load of stuff. Writing a check seems so distant and impersonal. Whatever your reason, a little more information could change your mind and this photo conveys that little bit of extra information brilliantly! Eye opening, isn’t it? Has it ever occurred to you that a non-profit can do more with your money than you can?
Lovely decor, prime table, and friendly greetings as we entered. So far so good. The food was terrific and also scored top marks. The service, however, left a sour taste that I won’t forget anytime soon. What is sad is that these guys probably made a conscious decision to provide the absolute best service to go with their great food and beautiful restaurant. And the hovering eagle-eyed maitre d’ undoubtedly believed he was doing exactly that. Nonetheless, I couldn’t have been more annoyed. Why? Because their notion of perfect was totally misaligned with what most diners would call perfect. These guys were totally wrapped up in themselves at the expense of our experience. For example:
There is good innovation and bad innovation. Can you tell the difference? One is stylish, compelling, easy to use, and even has the ability to capture pictures of bad innovation! The other is an attempt at stylish, impossible to use without touching the dirty water or the sides of the sink, and even has the ability to totally drench you if you turn the water on too high. Innovation isn’t just about being different! It is about creating value. Fun is good. But a functional item actually needs to be functional! Whoever designed this sink was an idiot. Reminds me of the people who started a new dog food company, invested a ton of money in developing and marketing healthful dog food only to discover the dogs wouldn’t eat it. Want loyal customers? Innovate smartly!
Hot-and-sour fish-soup potato chips and white fungus oatmeal, PepsiCo’s new snack flavors for China, are fabulous reminders that your likes and dislikes are irrelevant! It is your customer’s opinion that counts when it comes to product offerings, selling approach, and relationship building efforts. Assuming your customers share your values is a huge mistake, even if you aren’t doing business half way around the world. When was the last time you checked to see what your customers really appreciate, wish for, and need? How do you know they aren’t acquiring a taste for hot-and-sour fish-soup potato chips or white fungus oatmeal? Isn’t it time you asked?
What couple of changes will make the biggest difference for you in the new year? Answer this question at the executive level, the individual level, and every level in between. Focus and alignment are critical. Do you need to: Offer different products or services to provide compelling, differentiated, and profitable value Change your sales and distribution channels to increase sales and profits Communicate more carefully so your target markets know you exist, customers know what to expect, suppliers know what is important, and employees can contribute successfully Improve your execution so you are better, faster, and cheaper Develop new capabilities so you have more opportunities for success You can’t do it all and you can’t succeed if your organization is running around like a “chicken with its head cut off,” as my mother used to say. Dig into the broad categories above and choose just a few priorities. Be specific. What needs to be different? What will success look like? How can each individual help make those top priorities successful? Need help establishing your top priorities, communicating what they are and why they are important, and creating the alignment and commitment throughout your organization? Give us a call at 800-527-0087.
My hotels in Times Square and Philadelphia this past week were equally hypocritical or clueless, I’m not sure which. Both displayed similar little, green trimmed cards informing me in elegant script that the management embraces conservation and wishes to support my efforts to conserve, should I choose to do so. Towels on the floor will be replaced; hanging towels will be left to be used once again. This little card was hanging on the only hook. There were no towel racks. Conservation wasn’t an option. Is this stupidity or hypocrisy? Why print and display cards that make you look foolish? Those who equate luxury with throwing towels on the floor are unlikely to be impressed with the little cards. Those who are eager to conserve will only be extra irritated. This is a classic example of jumping on a marketing bandwagon instead of developing a trustworthy brand that signifies reliable value. If you want to appeal to people who value green practices, find real ways to be green. Pretending to be green while filling the world with wet towels and little plastic cards is both hypocritical and stupid.
At the conclusion of strategic planning with a client this week, one participant expressed tremendous appreciation for having been included. Although not a new employee, she was stunned by how much she had just learned about the company, its leaders, and the challenges and opportunities it faces. She was excited about the profound shift we created, and thankful that she understood the amazing ah-ha’s behind it. What a difference from two years ago when the previous strategic planning never even made a blip on her radar screen! I’ve heard this too many times to cringe. And often, the employee is wrong. She may have completely forgotten the strategic planning presentation she attended. But we all know what it’s like to be on the receiving end of such a presentation. It’s like being shown a picture of a tent and then expected to know how to survive in the wilderness.