Archive for the 'Customer Service' Category

I’ve had my Apple iPod Touch for a few months now and I’ve been very happy with the device. With Apple’s $20 software update, I can now read my e-mail, get a weather report, check the stock market, and view the latest you-tube video quickly and easily almost any place that has a wireless internet connection.

The problem for me has been that it Did Not Work at Starbucks. Unless I paid an exorbitant amount for their T-mobile wireless access, I was out of luck. This all changed a month ago as most of our local Starbucks are now offering 2 free hours of Wi-Fi service daily if you register your Starbucks card.

This free service now means that I can stop by for a coffee and check my e-mail and get a weather report while waiting in line. If I am meeting a group, the wide screen web browser on the iTouch is available to browse the internet and have the ability to e-mail other members of the team.

The iTouch allows me to take meeting notes quickly and easily and then e-mail them to myself for later printing at the office. This feature easily pays for the iTouch in convenience alone. One of the other cool features is the map widget which pulls up Google maps for directions and traffic information. The expanding touch interface allows me to zoom into the map quickly and easily. (You can read my reviews of all the new productivity applications here)

Starbucks has taken this relationship with Apple a step further and is offering an interface with the built-in iTunes application and the songs being played in the Starbucks store. If you like the song being played just touch the iTunes button on your iTouch and you’ll see the currently playing song listed automatically. You can easily purchase the song from the iTunes store and be able to take the song with you… cool!

I think Starbucks has hit a home run by offering free internet access. There are over 10 Starbucks in the area that I live and I’ll be a much more frequent guest now. Not only will my iTouch find a lot of use, but my laptop as well.

Registering your Starbucks card online only takes a minute and you’ll be up and running. And registering the card brings other free benefits too. Check out their new customer focused web site where you can let them know what you want in your in-store experience.

This has been an exciting week for me. I had the privilege of attending a very engaging seminar by professional speaker, Sheryl Roush. She took many different subjects and wove them together into a wonderful 90 minute presentation. Her secret was her energy. I have never seen anyone muster up so much energy on stage and be able to transfer that energy to her audience.

I am still energized days after seeing the presentation and some of my co-workers who were there are still talking about it. This energy is contagious. This type of energy is what creates customer evangelists and product loyalists.

When I took a minute to analyze what made her presentation so engaging, I realized it was focused energy. Her entire focus was on her audiences’ needs. She had really done her homework before hand. She had people wear nametags and called everyone by name. She had included some pictures of people she knew would be in the audience in her slide show. Her entire focus was WIIFT (What’s in It For Them).

Tenet 1. Engage your audience by focusing on THEM.

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I have always been a big fan of Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba and their popular Church of the Customer blog. Their 6 Tenets of Customer Evangelism from their popular book, Creating Customer Evangelists, have been a driving force in many of my speeches and presentations. Their forth tenet, “Create community: Encourage communities of customers to meet and share.” to me is what blogging is all about.

And creating a community is what they have done. Their popular blog has over 175,000 subscribers and their Society For Word Of Mouth is now a thriving online community. The forums on the site offer book reviews, personal experiences, and offer a great way to get the word out about your product or service.

Tenet 2. Engage your audience by creating COMMUNITY

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Yaro Starak is the master of online marketing and entrepreneurship. His popular blog, Entrepreneurs Journey has helped literally thousands of people from around the world to create their own online presence. What sets Yaro apart from many other web marketers is that he offers many significant tools and tips for free.

By just logging into his web site you can spend hours with some of the best web optimization tips online. He’ll help you get a successful domain name, set up a blog, and give you the know how to write compelling content.

On of his popular articles is about The Magic of Engagement, which gives you the secrets of engaging an online audience. As I read through this article I was amazed at how in-depth it went. He offered testimonials from students of his Blog Mastermind program as well as some advanced tips to engage your readers and keep them coming back. His secret…

Tenet 3. Engage people by offering SOMETHING of SIGNIFICANT VALUE

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In conclusion, engaging an audience is about changing your focus and putting yourself in your audiences’ seat. Sitting in their seat, ask yourself what you want to get out of the presentation, book, or web site. Write down what you see, hear and feel. This will be the basis of your presentation. Go from there and create a masterpiece!

Additional Resources:

Citizen Marketers: When People Are the Message by Ben McConnell, Jackie Huba Read more about this book…

Creating Customer Evangelists: How Loyal Customers Become a Volunteer Sales Force by Ben McConnell, Jackie Huba Read more about this book…

Heart of a Mother by Sheryl L. Roush Read more about this book…