Chip R. Bell's Blog, page 20

Turning Mundane into Magic

The Magic Castle in Beverly Hills, CA is a haven for magicians. You can get in the castle only by invitation from a member, typically a magician. You arrive and enter a door into the library after you have uttered the secret password. There is dinner followed by magic shows in one of three theatres. My favorite is the close-up theatre that seats only about twenty people. I have been twice, seen the same shows twice, and had the same meal…twice. And, even if I know how the trick is done, I am...

The Cultural Sweet Spot

The sweet spot is that place where a combination of factors result in the optimum response for a given amount of effort. It is a phrase particularly used in sports. It is the spot on the golf club or tennis racket where the intersection of the ball with the effort of the player drives the ball farther or faster or more focused.

Organizations have sweet spots. Zappos will tell you that anyone can copy their methods or products. But, no one can copy Zappos unique culture. Disney World, Southwest...

The Crossroads Principle: Fairness

When kids get tall enough to sit on your lap behind the steering wheel and still see the car in front of you, they are old enough to begin noticing the “customs of driving.” Not the rules, mind you, the implied agreements drivers have with each other.

We were at a stoplight and I was planning to turn left after the light changed. I waited for the oncoming car on the other side of the light to pass before turning left. My ten-year-old granddaughter asked, “How did you know to wait? You got to t...

The Innovation of Creating a Miracle

A Boston family adopted an Asian girl. No sooner had she arrived in the U.S. than the family learned she needed to have major surgery. The nine year old child––who spoke only Chinese and had life experiences limited to a small Chinese village and her trip to the U.S.––was very anxious. As she was about to be discharged following successful surgery she was asked through an interpreter, “What most surprised you about your stay here at Children’s Memorial Hospital of Boston?” The child smiled an...

How To Foster Innovation

It happened while driving over the Savannah River Bridge between Aiken, SC and Augusta, GA. Our one-year old son was seated in the backseat looking out of the car window. Without warning he pointed at the river and said, “water!” He had been mimicking words…dada, mama, bye bye…for quite a while. But, this was the moment he totally “got” the concept of language. Almost, immediately he began pointing at other objects and calling out their names. Parents cherish their child’s first word; we cher...

Innovative Service is Like Western Boots

I proudly wear Lucchese cowboy boots. These chocolate brown accessories remain affixed to my feet at work and at leisure. They have even become an integral part of my brand. I get a lot of very favorable comments about my boots; no one ever noticed my upscale dress shoes. That’s one reason boots remind me often of the features of innovative service.

Great customer service is like an excellent pair a dress shoes…plain, simple and always in style. But, western boots, while just as dressy as shoe...

Being Really Good

We needed a large bear proof crate that would hold a garbage can at our river home in the North Georgia mountains. Black bears are not particularly dangerous, unless protecting a cub, they are just always hungry. And, in the Spring and Summer they roam the river bank at night behind our house in search of garbage cans with an inviting aroma! Despite the fact that we chained the large can to the wall, they still crushed it in order to forage for any tasty contents, leaving our yard littered wi...

For Innovative Service, Avoid the Buffet

I have a confession…I almost always go for the “off the beaten path” choices. Tried and true is typically trumped by “I’ve never had it before.” So you can imagine my reception when the waiter seated us and handed us the breakfast menu with the announcement: “The buffet is a much better value than à la carte.” But when he saw my nonplussed reaction he added, “but none of the local flavors are on the buffet.”

So, what did his announcement mean? He meant that great food could be found on their s...

Twenty Things Today’s Customers Want

1. Make me smarter…it helps me keep up with my ever-changing world.

2. Help me do it myself…I enjoy feeling self-sufficient.

3. Make the response fast … but don’t sacrifice quality—quick and rushed are not the same.

4. Help me customize the experience like I want it.

5. Anchor your offering to a cause I believe in. Good works sell.

6. Entertain me. Make the experience bright, shiny and positively memorable.

7. Don’t invade my privacy; and, never let me worry about whether you know too much about me...

A Prescription for Remarkable Service

Twenty-four hour viruses are mystery bugs. You typically are totally clueless about where they come from or what makes them go away. All you know is that a 102-degree fever is not normal and medical help might be needed if you intend to not be slowed down by the malady!

It was 6:15pm on a Sunday night and I was flying out Monday to North Dakota to give a keynote. After enduring an afternoon of aches, I finally checked my temperature. I immediately called the Lake Oconee Urgent Care and got rec...