She held her brains in with her hands – Misperception Abounds
I was drawn in by a story that was shared on the radio by a typically reliable source. The announcer shared that recently a couple went to a business establishment and the wife waited in the car as the man engaged in an extended appointment. Upon returning to the car the man noticed his wife…
Back from Sabbatical:Product OR Experience?
It is terrific to be back from my “blogging sabbatical!” During my absence, I have been blessed with the opportunity to complete two customer experience book projects. Both books will be published this year by McGraw-Hill (one about UCLA and one about Zappos). In fact, the first Prescription for Excellence will be released on May…
Who’s in Charge? The Customer or You
I see it all too often but today the confrontation was epic! Let me set the stage in my best boxing ring announcer voice…. “In the red corner, a loud, brash, entitled customer and in the blue corner a poorly selected and ill-trained staff…..” Cesar Ritz, the founder of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, iscredited with…
Zappos – Workplace Culture Not Perks
This week Zappos soared to #6 on the Fortune Best Companies to Work For 2011 list! Just one more case example of the empirically demonstrated correlation between happy employees and happy customers. But here is something that might be missed, in 2009 (Zappos’ 10th year in business) the company debuted on the Fortune list in…
Lessons from the Road
I have been traveling and consulting a great deal lately and each day serves as an amazing learning lab. Here are some random lessons from my journeys, which I hope will relate to your business: 1) A man in a coffee shop started talking to me about a concept he called “otherness.”. This made me…
Starbucks Trenta – Can your experience get “too big?”
I knew “Trenta” was coming but I continue to be amazed at the media storm and second guessing Starbucks receives. In case you missed it, Starbucks launched their new 31oz drink size option (named Trenta) in 14 states this week including Virginia, Georgia, Florida, Texas, Hawaii and Arizona and will add California to the Trenta…
Building the road with hope and positivity
Half full or Half Empty? A new Gallup poll suggests optimists outnumber pessimists 2 to 1 – at least when it comes to expectations for the US economy in 2011. Given that data, I have a series of questions for you and your company: Do you share optimism for 2011? If so, how are you…
An honest letter from YOUR customer. Do you dare read it?
I KNOW that my brain works in strange ways. But for some reason, I started thinking about what a customer would say to owners and leaders about their honest wants, needs, and desires if they wrote them in a compact letter. Here’s my take…. Dear Business Owner/Leader: Please do what you say you will and…
How much permission do you have? Lessons from Zappos and Clorox
Something smells around here! Ah yes, it’s the distinct aroma of Clorox! I just finished the first draft of my new book The Zappos Experience (which will be released in the fall) and was revising a section concerning the Zappos brand platform. So I thought I might share a paragraph from the upcoming book to…
AT&T vs Verizon – A seriously improved customer experience?
Much will be written about the battle of the titans – AT&T vs. Verizon! Thanks, of course, to AT&T’s lost monopoly on the Iphone. AT&T will argue they have a “faster” customer experience and Verizon will suggest they are more “reliable.” In the end, prices should come down on Iphone data plans and features…
FREE RESOURCES
The Starbucks Experience: Leadership Tips eBook
Elevating Care in Healthcare: Lessons from the UCLA Health System eBook
