Stan Phelp's Blog

The Goldfish Chronicles

Sharing insights on customer experience, employee engagement, and brand strategy.

Customer Service For Anything: Powered by Zappos

“Our business is based on repeat customers and word of mouth. There’s a lot of value in building up our brand name and what it stands for. We view the money that we spend on customer service as marketing money that improves our brand.”

This quote by Tony Hsieh to Chief Marketer speaks to the importance that Zappos places on service.

There are legendary stories of customers calling Zappos to ask for random things… like help in ordering a pizza. During the pandemic, Zappos decided to lopside their customer service. Back in April they quadruple-downed and created, “Customer Service for Anything.” You could call, chat, text, or tweet for help with anything.

Adrian Swinscoe wrote about how it potentially saved lives (link to Forbes post in the comments) in NYC. Zappos helped Dr. Putrino of Mt. Sinai Medical Center source 300 pulse oximeters for COVID patients.

[The service is now in “hibernation” after running for months]

Effort matters. To quote Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, “It has long been an axiom of mine that the little things are infinitely the most important.” No sh*t, Sherlock.

Takeaway – How are you doing the little things like Zappos to honor your customers and become talk-able? How are you investing in added service to signal you care?

What’s your B.A.N.G?

What’s your B.A.N.G? A BANG is not to be confused with a BHAG.

Defined by Jim Collins in “Built to Last”:

“A true BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) is clear and compelling, serves as unifying focal point of effort, and acts as a clear catalyst for team spirit. It has a clear finish line so the organization can know when it has achieved the goal.”

A BANG is more intrinsic and purpose-driven. Popularized by author Mike Michalowicz, it’s your big bold audacious noble goal)

In Mike’s words,

“I have come to believe BHAG is not the best term. I think Big BANG is better. It’s the big vision we have for ourselves in our lives and in our business. Someone told me this term, I don’t even remember who and he said, ‘No, no, no, it’s missing one critical component, the BHAG is missing nobility.’ A BANG speaks to what our soul calls out to do so. What’s the impact you’re trying to have on the world?”

My purpose is to change a paradigm in marketing. Focus more on the differentiated experience (DX) to the customer and less on the promise to the prospect. Four years ago, I created a Big BANG. The goal was to speak at every American Marketing Association Chapter by the end of 2020. There’s 72 of them. This week I did Chapter 65 and 66. I’m closing in.

What’s your Big BANG?

3 things that Seth Godin, Brené Brown and Lao Tsu teach us about perfection

1. Brené Brown from her book, The Gifts of Imperfection:

“Most of us spend our lives trying to be, and seem, ‘perfect.’ We try to protect ourselves. It can sometimes be difficult to drop the pretense and own up to your flaws and faults – it takes courage. But what’s the greatest risk? Letting go of what other people think, or letting go of how you feel, what you believe, and who you are?”

Takeaway: Don’t conceal your flaws. Embrace them. Parade them without shame.

2. Seth Godin from a post entitled Perfect Processes:

“Perfection is sort of boring. I take the perfect for granted. I’m way more interested and spend far more time and money on the imperfect things, the things that might not work, the ideas and services, and products that dance around the edges. If you’re going to offer something that’s imperfect, by all means, make it as good as you possibly can, but embrace the fact that you’re not selling perfect. You’re selling interesting.”

Takeaway: Push beyond the norm. Do more of what makes you unique and less of what everyone takes for granted.

3. Lao Tsu wrote in the 6th century BC:

“Perfection is the willingness to be imperfect.”

Takeaway: Be perfectly imperfect.

Of 75 possible drivers of engagement the ONE that was rated as the most important…

…was the extent to which employees believed that their senior management had a sincere interest in their well-being.

It is vital that leaders demonstrate that they act in the best interest of their constituents. Shredding or sugar-coating the truth leads to distrust. Facts can be stubborn and dangerous things.

Want an example of this? It comes from social media.

Social media management company Buffer has a unique approach to building trust. “Default to transparency” is the phrase that has become rooted within the Buffer company culture. Since 2013, transparency has been integrated into the core values with beliefs like:

“always state your thoughts immediately and with honesty”

“use transparency as a tool to help others.”

Buffer is well known for the ease of public access to information such as the salary of every employee, the individual equity formula, and the company’s diversity statistics filtered by department, gender, ethnicity, and age.

Takeaway: Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis perhaps put it best, “If the broad light of day could be let in upon men’s actions, it would purify them as the sun disinfects.” Perhaps sunlight (not bleach) is the best disinfectant.

Rules of 20%: Upselling, the vital few, and sampling

Do you know the rules of 20%? Here are three tips for growing your business during a time of uncertainty.

1. UPSELLING

It typically costs only 20% of the investment to upsell to a current customer as opposed to acquiring a new one. Upselling is one of the most efficient ways to utilize your time and resources.

Here’s the TIP. Re-market to your current customers during times of uncertainty. When things get difficult, customers want to work with those partners they know, like, and trust.

2. THE VITAL FEW

For most businesses, the top 20 percent of customers drive 80 percent of profitability. It’s important to understand the law of the vital few and the trivial many.

Here’s the TIP: Not all of your customers are created equal. Find ways to follow-up and show appreciation for these critical customers.

3. SAMPLING

On average, of 100% of the products/services you can provide, your current customers, the ones you already do business with, on average only know 20% of your capabilities.

TIP. Never assume the customer knows everything you can do to help them. One technique to combat this is sampling. Sampling is the lowest hanging fruit in marketing. There may not be a more cost-effective way for brands to drive purchase intent and conversion.

Intentoinal Imperfection

Are you willing to use your rough edges or create deliberate flaws to be different? Perhaps you should intentionally leave something “out” or “in” to create imperfection? This practice in Japan is called Wabi-Sabi.

Wabi-Sabi is based on the belief that nature is beautiful and nature is imperfect. Therefore, we can make objects that are beautiful without needing to make them perfectly. Furthermore, we can make them imperfect on purpose. It’s not a mistake. It’s not incompetence. It’s not poor quality control. It’s a completely different standard and a completely different goal.

For example, pottery in the wabi-sabi style might have a deliberate nick or scratch added right before it is fired. This same technique can be used in gardens or architecture. The final product might be asymmetrical (like the plates in the picture below) or seemingly unfinished.

An example of this is the current fascination with reclaimed wood from old houses, barns, and even pallets. The wood is used in furniture and on walls and in decorations because it is imperfect, not because people are unable to find new wood, free of imperfections. The resulting creations are necessarily imperfect because they are made from damaged materials.

Are you ready to be porposely inperfect?

Exposure can make a difference in attitudes and ultimately performance

Exposure can make a difference in attitudes and ultimately performance. According to Fast Company, that’s the finding of Adam Grant, a The Wharton School professor who studied the onboarding training given to 71 new call center employees of a midwestern software firm.

According to the study, one group of trainees was chosen to meet an ‘internal customer’—an employee of another department whose salary depends on the sales that the new hires make—during their initial training. In combination with some inspirational words from the CEO, this contact with a real live beneficiary significantly improved both sales and revenue during the employees’ first 7 weeks.

The difference?

A not-insignificant 20% improvement in revenue per shift. Leadership messages from the CEO about purpose, vision, mission, and meaning, however, had no such effect on their own.

Can you create additional opportunities for exposure? In honor of Veterans Day, a great example of this comes from USAA.

USAA figuratively runs a Boot Camp as part of their onboarding. The insurance provider for military members and their families has an interesting process for all new employees. Training includes trying on military fatigues, eating MREs, and reading letters from military family members.

Question: Smart move or dumb PR stunt?

“We know, we never thought we’d be saying this either.” That was the message on Facebook from BURGER KING® UK. Here is the full message:

ORDER FROM McDONALD’S.

We never thought we’d be asking you to do this. Just like we never thought we’d be encouraging you to order from KFC, Subway, Domino’s Pizza, Pizza Hut, Five Guys, Greggs, Taco Bell, Papa John’s, Leon … or any of the other independent food outlets, to numerous to mention here. In short, any of our sister food chains (fast or not so fast).

We never thought we’d be asking you to do this, but restaurants employing thousands of staff really need your support at the moment.

So, if you want to help, keep treating yourself to tasty meals through home delivery, takeaway or drive-thru. Getting a whopper is always best, but ordering a Big Mac is also not such a bad thing.

Take care,
Team Burger King UK

This is a bold whopper of a move. A great example of the Pink Goldfish of Opposing. Burger King stands up for its employees and the industry by recommending their biggest competitor.

Question: Smart move or dumb PR stunt?

As for me, can I imagine a bitter rival advocating for an opponent for the benefit of the whole? Would you like fries with that, sir? Yes, please.

Kazakhstan. Very nice!

“Very Nice” If you are not familiar with the phrase, it’s commonly used by Borat. And it now being used by Kazakhstan in a new tourism campaign. The ads feature tourists hiking, drinking alcoholic horse milk, meeting locals, and marveling at Kazakh architecture.

This is a great example of the Pink Goldfish of flaunting. They are leaning into the publicity coming from “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.”

It is in stark contrast to how the country reacted when the original “Borat” hit theaters. According to The Guardian,

“After its release in 2006, the Kazakh government placed ads in US newspapers disputing some of the film’s claims and presenting the country as modern, stable, and outward-looking. The advertisements were timed with a visit from President Nursultan Nazarbayev and featured a photograph of Nazarbayev shaking hands with US President George W Bush.”

Kairat Sadvakassov, the deputy chairman of Kazakh Tourism shared to the Huff Post,

“Kazakhstan’s nature is very nice; its food is very nice; and its people, despite Borat’s jokes to the contrary, are some of the nicest in the world. We would like everyone to come experience Kazakhstan for themselves by visiting our country.”

Takeaway: Don’t cry over spilled milk, ferment it! It’s VERY NICE!

Why do we lose our minds at times? It’s because of our brain.

Why do we lose our mind at times? It’s because of our brain. It’s the most powerful processor on the planet. Responsible for incredible advances in art, culture and tech. Yet, at times, it can cause us to act like anything but a human being, especially when we are under pressure. Why?

Our brain is comprised of 3 areas. Let’s examine each:

Amygdala – the most primitive part is called the amygdala. Its primary role is the human highlighter—a radar that constantly scans the environment. The amygdala’s primary role is to look for anything in our lives that could be a threat.

Limbic System – the amygdala resides inside the wider limbic system, the area of our brain responsible for our basic drive for things such as hunger, sex and dominance. It helps with bodily functions, such as heart rate, pupil dilation and the sweat glands.

Neocortex – the largest and most complex part is the neocortex. Its involved w/ higher functions such as spatial reasoning, language and complex thought. You could argue that the neocortex is the thing that makes us rational + uniquely human. That is, until the moment we experience pressure.

When we feel threatened, the amygdala kicks in. It lights up our limbic system and our neocortex shuts down. Let the irrationality begin.

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Stan Phelp's Blog

The Goldfish Chronicles

Customer Service For Anything: Powered by Zappos

What’s your B.A.N.G?

3 things that Seth Godin, Brené Brown and Lao Tsu teach us about perfection

Of 75 possible drivers of engagement the ONE that was rated as the most important…

Rules of 20%: Upselling, the vital few, and sampling

Intentoinal Imperfection

Exposure can make a difference in attitudes and ultimately performance

Question: Smart move or dumb PR stunt?

Kazakhstan. Very nice!

Why do we lose our minds at times? It’s because of our brain.

Find Your Best-Match Program

Meet Your Presenter

Every time we do business together, Something amazing happens in the world!

When someone downloads a GOLDFISH eBook, we give one brick toward building school facilities in Cambodia

Discover the Impact

Download Stan’s Speaker Brochure