Is Your Chocolate Too Sweet?
June 4, 2009
Is it possible for chocolate to be too sweet? Absolutely. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing, unless trying to resolve the problem leaves you disappointed.
I surprised my wife with a getaway trip to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. We left early and drove the 4-1/2 hours to Charleston, South Carolina. We had gone there about 15 years ago; had a great time; and though I’d been there on business several times since then, it was Lorie’s first trip back.
We booked a really nice Bed & Breakfast (more on that in an upcoming Inner Circle issue), had some great meals, and saw some wonderful architecture. We also did the mandatory walk through the booths on Market Street, and stopped into Market Street Sweets, largely because they were shouting “Free Samples!” from within the store.
I had been in their sister store, River Street Sweets, in Savannah, Georgia, and brought back some treats for my family that they really enjoyed. Especially Lorie who is a big fan of dark chocolate.
Once I made the connection between the two stores, I suggested that we pick up some chocolate to have later that evening on the piazza outside our room. Dark chocolate and good red wine go really well together, so we were looking forward to a nice after-dinner treat.
That is, of course, until we actually tasted the chocolate. Dark chocolate is supposed to be more subdued, and certainly not as sweet at the mass-produced milk chocolate we’re accustomed to here. (For really good chocolate, by the way, try Matthew’s Chocolates in Hillsborough, North Carolina!)
This batch, for some reason, was sweet. And not just a little sweet, but really sweet – more sweet than a Hershey bar. And on top of that, it had a really nasty aftertaste – not at all what we had in mind to end the evening.
So the next day, I called the 800 number on the nice full-color brochure we had picked up when we were in the store and called to offer our feedback. To their credit, someone called us back almost immediately.
She asked some questions about when we were in and what we bought. I explained the whole romantic anniversary wine and chocolate thing, and how disappointed we were in the quality of the product. She said, “Well, if you have your receipt, you can bring it back and get a refund or exchange it for something else.
That was it. Well, the chocolate only cost about $5.00, and it wasn’t going to be worth the time and effort to take it back. As for exchanging it, I was at a loss as to why I’d want to exchange bad chocolate for other bad chocolate, so I thanked her for the call and let it go.
On the one hand, it wasn’t really a big deal – just $5.00 in chocolate. On the other hand, that chocolate was part of a nice evening we had planned for a special occasion. So two important concepts to consider this week:
1. Features vs. Benefits – Features are what you offer, in this case the chocolate. Benefits are what the customer gets, in this case, a romantic evening on the piazza of a bed and breakfast. Make sure you always understand how people are using your products and services, and let this drive both your marketing and your customer service.
2. Service Recovery – When a problem does arise, your ability to resolve the issue quickly and definitively can make the difference between a satisfied customer and dissatisfied customer. In this case, something like a $20 gift certificate would have gone a long way…and led to a completely different story.
Make sure whatever you do helps you build an army of raving fans, instead of creating a situation that leaves a bad taste in the mouth.
“Middle of the Road” Springsteen
June 4, 2009
Sometimes people have a tendency to wait for exactly the “right time” to do something – to launch a new product; to hire a new person; or even to take a vacation. But sometimes things don’t have to be absolutely perfect.
Bruce Springsteen played here in North Carolina last year. While I’ve seen him before, I didn’t make this particular concert because I was out of town. I did read David Menconi’s review in the local paper, though, and it contained an important message for all of us:
“Of course, every Springsteen show can’t help but conclude with triumph, thanks to ‘Born to Run,’ arguably the greatest encore song in classic-rock history. It wasn’t the best version of ‘Born to Run’ I’ve seen, or the best Springsteen show. In fact, I’d call it middle of the pack. But middle-of-the-pack Springsteen is still better than just about anything else out there.”
The same thing applies in your business: if you employ strong, proven marketing tactics – and do them with “middle of the road” quality – you’ll still be way ahead of the vast majority of people who insist on doing things the same tired old way they’ve done them for years.
Things don’t always have to be perfect – sometimes “good enough” is good enough. People spend far too much time making certain that every conceivable outcome in a marketing campaign is considered and addressed…to the point where they never launch the campaign or miss an important window of opportunity.
There’s a story you may have heard about two friends camping in the woods. Suddenly, they hear a rustling in the distance and see a bear starting towards them. One friend reaches into the tent, grabs his sneakers, and starts putting them on. The other friend says, “Are you crazy? You can’t outrun a bear!” To which the guy with the sneakers responds, “I don’t have to outrun the bear – I just have to outrun you!”
Put on your marketing sneakers and let someone else deal with the bear!
We Only Hire Captains
June 2, 2009
When you’re looking to hire the right employees, hire only “captains” and maybe yours can be a “high-flying” organization as well.
One of the most difficult challenges facing growing companies today is hiring the right people. It’s not enough to hire a person with one particular position in mind. You need to consider how you will be able to utilize this person’s skills as his or her position evolves. One company that you’ll recognize immediately has a unique approach to meeting this challenge.
Several pilots from American Airlines live in our neighborhood, partly because it’s a close commute to the airport, and partly because it’s far enough away to pretty much eliminate any noise from overhead air traffic. At a recent neighborhood party, several of the pilots were discussing how their company hired and promoted within the system.
Essentially, their system is based on seniority. Pilots who have been with the company the longest are promoted to captain and fly the largest equipment and receive the greatest pay. The more junior pilots work as first officers or flight engineers on smaller equipment and at a lower rate of pay.
This system seemed to make sense for newly hired pilots with limited experience. But what happened when pilots joined the airline after 20 years of service in the military or after their previous employer went bankrupt, as was the case with Eastern airlines?
I was speaking with one of my neighbors, an MD-80 captain, and asked him, “If you were a captain before joining American, would you be hired as a captain at American?” His answer was brief and to the point, “American Airlines only hires captains.” As I was looking a little puzzled, he went on to explain, “We do only hire captains, we just start them off as flight engineers or first officers. Every pilot in the cockpit has to be capable of flying the plane; and in time, most will be eligible to fly as captains.”
The hiring process at American Airlines is designed to select only those applicants that show the leadership qualities and personal traits that will serve them in the command of an airplane.
Keep this in mind as you face the challenges of expanding your workforce. The person you hire as a software engineer may end up as director of engineering. The customer service representative may become vice president of marketing. Looking at your applicants in terms of their long-term potential will help your organization be more responsive to growth opportunities.
When you’re looking for new employees, hire only “captains” and maybe yours can be a “high-flying” organization as well.
