SMALL STONES TO THE REAR!

by John Ingrisano

The Freestyle Entrepreneur

Can one foolish statement make or break your business?  Well, this is a story I heard at least 45 years ago from a man, a friend and mentor, who experienced it at least 20 years before that.  It was one snapshot moment that made him a lifelong enemy of one of the world’s most famous jewelry store.

Joe was a young man about to pop “The Question” to his girlfriend, Marlene.  He had been given a smallish diamond ring, a family heirloom, for the occasion.  However, it needed to be refit and resized.  To Joe, it was the biggest, most beautiful, and most important diamond ring in the world. 

Excited and proud, he brought the ring into Tiffany’s in New York City.  Grinning from ear to ear, he approached the first counter in the store, held out the ring, and said he needed to have it resized for his soon-to-be-fiancée.  As Joe told me the story years later, he remembers that the man behind the counter looked first at him and then down at the ring, and then he announced in an icy cold tone, “Small stones to the rear.”

Pop!  There went Joe’s balloon.  Crushed!  Shattered!  Deflated!  I suspect he hesitated, took a step to the rear of the store, and then paused again.  All I do know for sure is that he then turned on his heels, walked out of the world’s most famous jewelry store, and never returned … ever.

Now, I suspect that this snide, pretentious fop was not indicative of Tiffany’s customer service policy.  Still, there he was, at the front of the store, in the role of greeter.  (There’s a Wal-Mart joke in here somewhere, but we’ll skip it.)  All I do know for sure is that it took just one stupid, thoughtless comment to destroy what could have become a positive, profitable, decades-long relationship.

The point:  (1) Teach your people the why and how of quality customer service; and (2) get rid of those employees who do not buy into the program.  Any questions?

That having been said: Work hard.  Make money.  Have fun.  And keep in mind that quality customer service is money in the bank … while bad customer service means big losses in sales and profits.  – JRI

It was 11:45 AM on a knock-about Saturday.  I’d just finished doing some clean-up at our church and was ready to pick up two pizzas that I could pop into the oven later today for dinner for friends before heading off to hear/see Messiah at Green Bay’s Weidner Center. 

I walked into Papa Murphy’s in Sturgeon Bay and placed my order.  I was first to order, followed rapidly by three other groups.  Behind the counter was one person (on alone until noon, I learned) who was taking orders, making pizzas, doing whatever takes place in the back. 

This employee, Patty was her name, I learned, was pleasant, efficient, never lost her cool as the orders began to back up.  Best of all, as each new customer entered, she cheerfully greeted/acknowledged him/her and asked to please wait a few minutes.  (That’s a big one to me: I hate being ignored by a too-busy waitress/clerk/etc.  Just an acknowledgement that I am present and a request to wait … and I surely will wait.) 

As she made my order, I joked with her that she was manager today, as well as assistant manager and gopher. She smiled and, while working like a Tasmanian Devil, said that relief would show up at noon. 

Patty was terrific – cordial, efficient, hard working.  Even though several customers had to wait to place their order, her acknowledgement of them and pleasant demeanor kept them waiting without complaint.        

My point:  Simply to acknowledge a go-the-extra-mile employee and remind all business owners (A) that employees like Patty are out there and (B) when you find one, cherish and reward him or her.  That person is invaluable to the success of your business. 

Work hard. Make money.  Take care of your primo employees!!!!!

The Freestyle Entrepreneur – winner of the 2010 Top 35 Entrepreneur Blog awards from OnLine MBA.

John Ingrisano

The Freestyle Entrepreneur

This one’s liable to get me in big trouble with some folks, especially my local business owners.  But here goes. 

I’m seeing major problems with the long-term viability of “buy local” programs.  Okay, the idea makes sense, but ONLY if the local businesses play ball.  Too often, they don’t.  

In recent weeks, I’ve heard about half a dozen complaints from people in my town and others in the state that they tried to work with local businesses, but the businesses they talked to had high prices and/or lousy service.  The complaint was summarized by one person like this:  “I’m willing to buy local whenever I can, but ********** seemed oblivious to the fact that I was trying to buy locally.  Instead, they tried to take advantage of me.” 

At the same time, I’ve heard business owners complain long and loud that the locals had no customer loyalty, but would go to the big-box stores just to save a few pennies.  

Sorry, but these days a few pennies are well worth the drive.  Most of all, I’ve been in business a long time, and I’ve always believed it was the businesses’ responsibility to motivate customers to buy from them.  Period.  Give them a reason and they will.  Try to make them feel guilty … and they’ll leave in droves.  Those that are doing a lot right do not need a “buy local” campaign.     

I’ve always been a fan of buy local, but here’s the big problem:  There is a reason customers go elsewhere for a purchase.  Buying local is fine, as long as the local merchants work to make themselves more competitive and not just sit back and see “buy local” as a windfall for them.  

For me, it goes back to the “Buy American” campaigns from the 1970s.  While America was making the worst cars around back then, they had to do more than just push me to buy their products.  I’d have loved to buy American, but the products were awful.  So, I bought Japanese.  (Today, by the way, I look for reasons to buy Ford, not just because they’re American, but because they are now creating a quality vehicle.)

Recommendation when it comes to “buy local” campaigns:

1. Educate businesses that they need to do their part and make themselves as competitive as possible.  This doesn’t necessarily mean lower costs, but perhaps quality, home-town service. 
2. Recognize that no customer should feel obligated to buy locally. That kind of thinking is all turned around.  Instead, the businesses need to give them a reason to do so.   
3. Do not make “buy local” an ongoing, year-round campaign.  Instead, designate a week or so every year to a whoop-dee-doo “buy local” campaign.  Get businesses to sign on, commit to wow their customers, and participate, giving them a chance to demonstrate why customers should buy from them.

Bottom line:  Work hard.  Make money.  Have fun.  And, remember, no customers owe you anything!  Get out there and give them a good reason to buy from you … and to keep coming back for more.

As you may recall, in the name of shameless self-promotion, I sent out a notice a few days ago announcing that my biz blog, The Freestyle Entrepreneur, had been named one of the best blogs for entrepreneurs.  That tickled me.

But what really got me giggling was a card I received a few days later from Dean Lund, my insurance agent with American Family.  The card, with a hand-written note and a copy of my email announcement, caught me totally by surprise, especially since of the hundreds (thousands? Millions?) of people who were sent the notice, Dean was the only one to send a congrats note.    (And, no, no, no, this is not criticism of anyone; we’re all busy.)

This does explain why Dean is my insurance agent and has been for about 15 years.  Now, I could probably find insurance cheaper, and I get offers in the mail all the time.  But Dean has always been there for me, even now that I live more than 150 miles from his office and haven’t actually seen him face to face in at least 10 years.  I need service or have a question? He or one of his staff makes sure it is taken care of 100 % of the time.    

My point:  Nothing that Dean does is all that mystical or extraordinary.  He just always walks the walk when it comes to top-of-the-line service.  Most of all, he is aware of his clients and knows how rare it is for people to receive an attaboy (or attagirl).  We are all pretty much starved for appreciation; yes, even an old dog like me.  (Scratch me behind the ear and say, “Good fella,” and I’ll wag my tail for hours!)

The bottom line:  The five minutes Dean Lund took to send me that card not only made me giggle and earned my appreciation, but it also earned my business for a long time to come.

So, work hard, make money, have fun, and find a way to make your customers giggle.  — JRI   

 * * *

The Freestyle Entrepreneur — winner of the 2010 Top 35 Entrepreneur Blog awards from OnLine MBA.