A Day With Seth Godin: Customer Attendees

3 very lucky customers will attend, as our guests, Seth Godin's Whiteboard Seminar on January 26th.

We've sent a number of customers to this event in the past. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.  ( I know my "brain was on fire" with ideas and inspiration for 3 months after I attended the event in 2004. And that's a good thing. )

The 3 customers are:

Paul Chaney from Radiant Marketing Group. 

I'm very happy to see Paul attend. Paul and I've been friends for a year or so, though living in Iowa and he in Tupelo, MS we don't see each other often, at least in person. Paul's got a great blog and I'd recommend him for your marketing needs, especially if you're building your blog.

John Cronin from PLP Digital Systems. We've served their conference calling needs for nearly 2 years. I'm delighted to see them jump on this offer. In the past they've attended the Topgrading seminar as our guest also. I look forward to meeting with them, getting  to know them better and sharing their feedback from Seth's Whiteboard Seminar.

Juana Penson from Financial Services Technology Consortium.  We celebrate this March 4 years of serving FSTC's conference calling needs. Likewise, I look forward to knowing them better and gathering their impressions of Seth's Whiteboard Seminar.

We'll connect with them the week after they return from this event. We want to share with you their impressions of this event: what it was like, what  they learned, what they didn't learn, what they expect to implement, how it changed or didn't their thoughts on marketing, and if they'd recommend it. We'll share that with you to help you make your decision, or your manager's,  for attending future events like this.

( I can't speak for Seth; he'd shoot me if I did... But in the past he's offered this event several times each year. Assuming he does...we'll send another group of customers each time.)

We missed an opportunity to help

We missed an opportunity to help. I'm embarassed to admit it. But, we did. The opportunity was to help all of our customers in Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi who suffered from Katrina and Wilma.

While we all donated here at the office (and the company will match everyone's donations) and while we were outraged at the lack of help coming from FEMA and the state agencies, we could have done more to help our customers located in that area.

So...better late than never, we'll start contacting them tomorrow.

It took me calling a customer in Florida yesterday to make this 'duh-like' connection. I often call customers randomly just to check on our service. I called this long-time customer, one who's shared a reference and photo on our website, and one where we've discussed an expanded working relationship. He seemed distracted and impatient. Finally he remembered our name and service and acknowledged he loved us, thanks. 

I followed up with an email as I normally do. Then an auto-reply came back saying he still had no power, was working off a generator, email was intermittent as was his cellphone. 

It was only later in the day that the connection in my head was made. He's in Florida. Hurricane Wilma's ruined his life for the past week. Why don't we help him?

We will.

Look in your own customer database. Find a customer effected by these disasters and call 'em and offer to help.  I guarantee just the call will help make their day.

I'll let you know what, even now, we can do for our customers.

You're all invited to WOMBAT

We would like to invite you to an important event: WOMMA's Word of Mouth Basic Training Conference. This is the ultimate "How To" conference, the one to attend for anyone who wants to master the art of word of mouth. We think you will find it an amazing crash-course in all things WOM, with an impressive lineup of speakers and case studies. See below for full details.

We've arranged for a $75 discount as a courtesy to our customers - just enter this code: ccuisawesome

Conference Calls Unlimited is a leading member of WOMMA, which is committed to building a prosperous word of mouth marketing industry based on best practices, measurable ROI, and ethical leadership. You can learn more at WOMMA's website.

About the Word of Mouth Marketing Association WOMMA is the official non-profit trade association for the word of mouth marketing industry. Our members are building a prosperous word of mouth marketing profession based on ethical leadership, measurable ROI, and best practices. WOMMA has more that 200 member companies. We believe in a more honest and open relationship between marketers and consumers, and we hope that you will join us if you share these values. Learn more at http://www.womma.org

* Full disclosure: Andy Sernovitz, CEO, for WOMMA, wrote this note including the graphics. I used it in its near-entirety as it saved me much time and it's likely much better than anything I could have done myself. Thank you, Mr. Sernovitz!

* Full-disclosure 2: I'm a speaker at WOMBAT, WOMMA's Basic Training Conference.

NAPSTERIZED KNOWLEDGE: Make it a point to share knowledge freely

NAPSTERIZED KNOWLEDGE: Make it a point to share knowledge freely

This is # 2 of the 6 Tenets of Customer Evangelism.

From the Customer Evangelism Manifesto:

The original Napster, the file-sharing service that turned the music industry's distribution system on its ear, taught us that sharing your knowledge freely increases the actual value of knowledge by making it more accessible. The more you share with the world, the more that people will tell others about it.

For companies that primarily sell to other companies, discover routes to sharing more information among all of your trading partners so the experience of being a customer becomes more valuable.

Here's some initial steps we've taken to NAPSTERIZE OUR KNOWLEDGE:

1) Our newsletter.  You're reading it here. We've archived newsletters from January 2004 for your reading convenience and we're using this blog for easier interaction with  you using  the comments and trackback features.

Our newsletters have included tips for better conference calls, creating a remarkable company, computer/network safety, and names and information on companies who've won our monthly awards.

2) Our Testimonials.  Each testimonial includes that person's name and contact information along with their website and sometimes a photo or video.

3) Our Partners Page.  We link with those companies who have partnered with us in recommending our respective services.  This will continue to grow, ultimately into, we hope, a self-sustaining community of business entrepreneurs.

4) SPECIAL EVENTS. We've sponsored customers to attend a number of business seminars, including: A Day With Seth Godin, TOPGRADING and Referral Flood Power Group with John Jantsch.  We'll do the same.  And for a few large organizations we're creating opportunities for these events scheduled just for their members. Compliments of Conference Calls Unlimited.

We redirected nearly the entire advertising budget away from standard advertising and instead to creating more value for our customers with these type resources.  The results seem positive. More value for our customers. More ways we provide to help YOU grow your organizations.

And in return we receive more referrals which creates a stronger business community of users.

Tell us what you do to NAPSTERIZE YOUR KNOWLEDGE. Let us broadcast it to our customers and maybe the world in an exclusive edition of TESTIFY profiling only customers of Conference Calls Unlimited. We were profiled in the first edition.

Customer Winners for January

Each month we award gifts to our customers. It's just one way for us to say "thanks" to our customers. And it's a tradition we started a few years ago that everyone seems to enjoy. During that time we've thanked over 100 customers in this way.

This month's gifts and their winners are:

IPOD Winner #1

Julie Kruse                                                                                              Center for Economic Progress       

The Center for Economic Progress increases economic opportunities for low-income families, children, and individuals by improving access to public, private and non-profit programs and services.                                                               

IPOD WINNER #2 (There's a story here.)

Paul Craig                                                                                                 Rudy Project

The Rudy Project designs and manufactures hi-tech sunglasses, goggles, and helmets and accessories using the application of science, advanced materials and computer technology to create functional, aesthetically superior and technologically advanced products.

The Story. Normally, we award one IPOD to one customer each month.  However, we make mistakes and we honor our commitments.

So, in a flurry we wrote a formal award announcement for the first IPOD but sent it to Paul Craig, in error. As you might expect...Paul loved the idea of getting an IPOD. So...we honored his delight and our promise and we gave him the 2nd one.

Paul, being a gentleman, rewarded us with a pair of his sunglasses. His sunglasses are designed for professional athletes. All I can say is that as non-professional biker and runner these are the nicest, lightest frames with the sharpest most pleasing design I've ever worn or seen.  The lenses are interchangeable. The optics create such a comfort to the eyes. I love 'em. And I've worn high-end Ray-Bans, Serengetis and Oakleys. They're all nice. But Rudy Project sunglasses, as a total package, are superior.  And they can handle prescriptions, too.

So, yes, they're a customer. But their product is REALLY good.

$50.00 GIFT CERTIFICATE

Martin Scheck                                                                                           Sweet Paper Sales Corporation

Sweet Papers is a third-generation, family-owned business. They are a re-distributor of hotel, restaurant, janitorial, office and food supplies carrying products from over a 150 different suppliers.

Your Logo Here Card: Original Design

Here's a version of our recently mailed "Your Logo Here" card. We mailed it to our customers in January. And to date, February 16, we have a dozen customers in various stages of reviewing, designing, approving or distributing their versions of the card.

The first confirmed order we processed was from LSQ Funding. You can see the final version of their copy of this card along and read their plans for using this resource for their goals.

We'll report on their results from using this card later this spring.

And we'll also show the final examples of the cards for each company and report on their uses and results in future posts.

We hope the results are productive. But if not, we'll report that too. Learn from the experience and use it as a step towards finding a better solution.

Your Logo Here Card: Customer Version

This is the final version for our "Your Logo Here" card we designed together with LSQ Funding.

We'll print and arrange for delivery of 1000 of these cards at our expense.  The purpose here, or what's in it for our customers, is a co-branded giveaway item for our customer to share with their prospects. And in that process we're able to give away free samples of our service to their prospects who respond to the card's offer.  And again, it's free for our customer, free for their prospects and ours.

I have to say the card design looks pretty nice. Thanks to the designers at LSQ Funding, Cindy Whitney  our Manager of Customer Service and Alek Lisefski.

LSQ Funding will hand them out at a conference they are holding in 2 weeks and again in March. The conference in March is the International Boston Food Show.

LSQ Funding is a prominent partner with us. We display his testimonial on our website. 

Call me to discuss how we can partner with your company to help you achieve your goals. 877-227-0611, ext. 12 or zane@conferencecallsunlimited.com.

Customer Profiles Wanted

Tell us about you. Tell us about your company. Tell us what your organization does that makes it so remarkable, unique, different, wonderful. Share your passion for what you do, your passion for your customers, your company, your mission. And if we, our service, helps you achieve those goals then share that, too. We're only human.

And we'll then share your personal stories here in your own words with all of our customers.   

Who knows, maybe we'll publish a book of our customers' passions in life, in the manner of TESTIFY: How Remarkable Organizations are Creating Customer Evangelists.

tomer

Free Business Book Excerpts at 800-CEO-Read

Are you a voracious reader, a compulsive book buyer, one who can't be left alone in a book store?

Have you found the adage "You can't always tell the book by its cover" or jacket or reviews to be patently true? Has that experience which lead to this truth been a bit painful and costly?

Would you like to be efficient in your business book reading,  investing a few moments of reading excerpts to insure the book has some connection with its cover?

Well now you can at 800-CEO-READ's blog.  Here you can read selected chapters of leading business books, find other readers 'best of 2004' list, and share your own. 

Today's post justifies the time investment for reading this blog. First off, I would never pick up a business book of 1120 pages, especially if it's titled scintillatingly as thus: Financial Times Handbook of Management 3rd Edition. Nope. Not a way in ...there, would I pick this book up. Call me cheap and superficial, a readers butterfly.  But thanks to this blog pointing out the pearl within: the list of 80 books every CEO should read. And as Todd, the blogger here, writes:

Any business book list with a title originally published 600 B.C. is one you can't pass by.

I won't now. Luckily I won't have to...as Todd with the publisher's permission is sharing this list on daily posts over the next two weeks. 

Honestly, I can't wait.

My wife knows better than to leave me alone in a bookstore.   And with a site like 800-ceo-read I'll never need to test her patience again.

6 Tenets of Customer Evangelism

Would your customers go forth  and evangelize about your organization, its products and services? It's rare. Most companies provide reasons for their customers to become 'customer vigilantes' who ride the consumer trail warning others to avoid the aggravations of many companies.

But how do you go about creating customer evangelists?

First, and simply, you create a remarkable product. You give your customers something to shout about, testify about, evangelize about.  Once you have that, then you can be a bit more systematic.

How do you go about systematically creating customer evangelists?

You get converted at the CHURCH OF THE CUSTOMER with Jackie Huba and Ben McConnell presiding.  Their CHURCH has 6 tenets:

* CUSTOMER PLUS DELTA: Continuously gather customer feedback.

* NAPSTERIZED KNOWLEDGE: Make it a point to share knowledge freely.

* BUILD THE BUZZ: Expertly build word-of-mouth networks.

* CREATE COMMUNITY: Encourage communities of customers to meet and share.

* MAKE BITE-SIZE CHUNKS: Devise specialized, smaller offerings to get customers to bite.

* CREATE A CAUSE: Focus on making the world, or an industry, better.

You can see this list, and profiles of companies who embody each tenet, at the  CHURCH OF THE CUSTOMER Manifesto.   

Each week we'll discuss another tenet and how we attempt to fulfill it. The point here is to gather your feedback as customers for our efforts here.

It's posted on Seth Godin's CHANGETHIS Blog, which embodies Napsterized Knowledge, Build the Buzz, Create Community and Create A Cause. That last one is important. Seth's cause is to create a more open, encouraging, respectful dialogue to effect needed changes in any and all areas of life.

We've had our manifesto published as well. We'll be following up with part 2, this year: Outsourcing's impact on customer satisfaction.