Ever go to the grocery store and someone goes out of his or her way to help you? Your favorite pub has that one server that gives you amazing service paired with that irresistible smile? Finally, does your bank have a cute teller?
These perceived minute aspects of your business have a much larger positive affect than you think. The three examples above all have something in common; they make the customer happy. A happy customer is a repeat customer and an ambassador for your brand. Think about it, if you like a server at a certain restaurant chances are you will return, why? Because they made you feel great and that’s worth talking about, the definition of being remarkable.
This doesn’t happen regularly and it’s difficult to ask out of your staff but you can encourage it. When someone goes above and beyond to help someone, show then that you appreciate it. Encourage your staff to pay attention to detail, after all they don’t have to dress as nice as they do, do they? There will always be some people who leverage their own assets to create a positive affect on their organization, it’s up to you to spot those people and do whatever you can to keep them, after all, they are your brand.
Sasktel, one of our local telecommunication companies introduced a new feature they called ebill. I’m sure you already took a stab at what “ebill” is, an online way to look at your monthly statements thus saving postage, paper and the company money in the long term. Great idea right?
It was a great idea until two months down the road my ebill account had been deactivated. Deactivated? Why? What reasoning did they go through to come to the conclusion that after 35 days of access to this online account they would need to deactivate it?
The first time I gave them the benefit of the doubt, maybe it was a security issue. I called and asked for them to reactivate my ebill account, they did and when I checked, it said “Expires in 35 days”. WHY? This defies all logic. Researching further I found that I need an “activation” code to activate my account, an activation code? I just got off the phone with the help desk guy and he didn’t think to tip me off about this activation code I’m going to need? I know it’s not his fault, someone has made a process that defies all logic.
I really would like to understand why they deactivate accounts after 35 days because as of now they give me no option but to assume that this protocol defies simple human logic. So I guess we’ll just add another one to Seth’s list.
Seth Godin talked about things that are broken a few years back that you must watch to understand why these things happen in our world. If anyone finds the answer to this ebill conundrum please do share, I don’t want to have to call Sasktel every 36 days to reactivate my ebill account.
Just because no ones done it before doesn’t mean it’s impossible. Our world loves to conform to what is proper and what is right. I say standout, don’t conform, try something new, be different, challenge the impossible. Why? Because everything was impossible at one point before someone challenged it and prove it to be possible.
It can be very discouraging on the impossible path; it isn’t the norm so those that choose to challenge mediocrity are bound to face much ridicule. Trying something new is always scary but to those who dare to push the limits await a substantial reward. They are the trend setters, the leaders, the people that aren’t afraid to be wrong and without them our world would never progress.
If you’re one of these people good for you and good luck, if you’re not, maybe think twice about putting someone down for trying something new next time.
@JohncMayer: That cat from the “hang in there” poster just died. Makes a man just wanna give up.
11:33 PM Oct 15th from Twittelator
Twitter’s worth taking a look at just to hear what John Mayer has to say, yes it’s really him and he’s one of the funniest on Twitter (the “tweet” above is my personal favorite).
Twitter, the overnight sensation is quickly becoming the most popular social media platform out there. I am sure many people still see it as a waste of time, and it can be, but it can also be a very useful tool. Twitter is the fastest method of transportation for information. Every “twitterer” wants to be the best and the best, tweet the most interesting, helpful stories or links the fastest. So the most popular people on Twitter are the people with the best tweets, you get the picture?
To get you started on Twitter I have compiled a list of the people you should follow. These are the people I interact with most often. Set up an account and start following this list, it’ll sure bring some amusement to your day, also don’t forget to follow @FraserStrategy 
Funny tweeps
@johncmayer @TheOnion @shitmydadsays @danecook
Great Tweeters
@unmarketing @GuyKawasaki @jowyang @barrymoltz @chrisbrogan @IncMagazine @bcuban @MackCollier @freakonomics @tonyrobbins @jeffpulver @HubSpot @fastcompany @Mashable
News
@Reuters @HarvardBiz @OPENForum @nytimes
Local Organizations
@Squareflo @SaskSecrets @codaclothing @reginacougars @22Fresh
Local People
@AHiddy @Derekwu @dannicholls @KiriakoRegina @mcfarljo @kdeanglobal @Tylerwilox @greened @SeanStefan @brandon_wu @rayderge
The Agency’s
@AdsparkComm @TheBurningBird @Bravo_Tango @browncomm @LookMatters
I apologize if I’ve missed any big names, please comment below for others that you’d recommend following.
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