Steve Miller's Blog, page 19
July 17, 2017
Another CEO Social Media Blunder?
I’ve said it over and over, CEO’s need to be very careful about what they send out via the Internet. The latest case in point is the conversation between two CEO’s — one a past customer of a janitorial supply company and the other the CEO of Walter E. Nelson, the supply company.
The customer is unhappy with the lack of service he’s getting from a sales rep and complains directly to Walter E. Nelson’s CEO. The response is, shall we say, unsatisfactory, so the customer posts the conversation on LinkedIn for comments.
Watch this week’s Uncopyable Business! Read the conversation and let me know your comments.
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July 10, 2017
HELP! I’M TRAPPED IN AA’S FREQUENT PRISONER PROGRAM
Are you old enough to remember when air travel was a real pleasure? I started actively flying (primarily on American) when I was a freshman at Purdue University. Flying was fun. I looked forward to the experience.
36 years ago American Airlines started its frequent flyer program, arguably the most successful in airline history. Heavy travelers, like me, were rewarded for our loyalty. In the beginning it was pretty cool.
Fast forward to today. Air travel is NOT fun. It is NOT a great experience. Anybody who loves air travel has simply not traveled enough. My good friend George Walther is the lone exception.
Why does my customer experience with American Airlines have to be painful? I’m especially critical of AA and the other major airlines when I have such a great experience with another huge company, Apple.
Last week I had an unnecessarily poor experience on AA, but then had a very good experience with Apple Support.
Listen to my stories and see how businesses should be creating Uncopyable Customer Experiences and how this is not just offering better customer service.
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July 4, 2017
I drove 3206.3 miles to learn this lesson
My smoking’ hot wife, Kay, our bipolar border terrier, Shaka, and I just returned from a 14-day, 3206.3 miles road trip. In 30 years of marriage we’d never taken a long road trip. I can now check that off my bucket list!
Of course, over 14 days we stayed at several small motels and ate at numerous restaurants that allowed dogs, giving us the opportunity to have some really great and too many not-so-great customer experiences.
Interestingly enough, there was ONE very big difference between the great and the not-so-great. A simple, but critical difference.
Watch this week’s video and learn what that one difference is and why YOU should make sure you’re embracing it.
June 18, 2017
Technology Part 2: Amazon Buys Whole Foods!
Amazon vacuums up Whole Foods. Pega World plans AI world domination. The technology steamroller continues to upset the apple cart of business. (What a mixed metaphor!)
But really, what do YOU think about all this? How far should businesses go in using technology to manage customer relationships. And shouldn’t the customer have a say in all this?
Join Steve in a follow-up discussion and learn why technology isn’t a hammer. It’s a shield!
June 14, 2017
ARE YOU USING TECHNOLOGY LIKE A HAMMER?
I think we all have a love-hate relationship with new technology. At the same time, we need to be very careful to not let technology get the upper hand, allowing it to cloud our thinking and our relationships with customers.
What is that danger exactly and how is it similar to an issue raised in a 1990 TV commercial?
June 13, 2017
Embracing Uncopyable Orange
If you know Steve at all, you know his color is ORANGE. Our daughter, Kelly, was the one who picked the color. That was years ago (at the time, she was 2…and she’s now 24)! Steve started to wear orange on stage, and eventually got complaints if he DIDN’T. He saw the opportunity, and made it the color of his brand.
Now, orange is a symbol of the Uncopyable philosophy, as explained in Steve’s new (orange) book, Uncopyable – How to Create an Unfair Advantage Over the Competition. Orange is ingrained in the mind of the market, and he owns it.
I’m his wife – I’ll let you in on a little secret – even his Calvin Kleins are orange. (TMI?)
Steve and I both love seeing others embrace the spirit and message of Uncopyable. The message is resonating in a big way with readers – check the reviews on Amazon. They’re pretty amazing – even to us. Readers are reporting awesome takeaways. But some, like BFF John Burns, have really taken the Uncopyable philosophy to heart. After he read it, he purchased books for his grown children, and then his key clients. He sees its value for them, and knows he’ll be an Uncopyable resource for them as the messenger.
John’s mission is to be Uncopyable in representing his own personal brand.
When John went to the Grand Prix Montreal, he took the orange glasses we’d sent him as a thank-you gift. What better way to watch the Grand Prix than through orange glasses?
The orange glasses make the world look orange, which is pretty darn cool. But they’re also a reminder to keep your radar up and learn from “alien” experiences.
John didn’t see Uncopyable as a “read it and forget it” book. He’s living it!
John’s Amazon review:
“I’ve followed Steve Miller’s weekly webinar for a few years now so I knew this book was going to be good.
This book is concise and muscular. The chapters on Stealing Genius (TM), and breathrough referrals alone make it a must read. And you won’t believe it when you find out who Steve’s dad is and what Steve was exposed to from a young age. Again, no wonder this book is so valuable.
Certainly, Steve is talking about how businesses can distance themselves from the competition by making themselves uncopyable, but between the lines, he’s also showing you that, in today’s competitive world, every person needs to learn how to make THEMSELVES uncopyable. I won’t always be around to give my adult children good advice, so I bought them their own copies.”
My advice to young business people is the same as for my own children. Read, keep, and practice this book.”
Kudos and thanks to you, John!
June 5, 2017
The Business Genius of The Beatles
When this broadcast is being recorded, Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band celebrated its 50th anniversary.
There is no questions both the album and The Beatles were, and still are, great examples of achieving an UNCOPYABLE status within their industry.
Most people, however, are unaware of how focused The Beatles were on the fact they were a business. Yes, they ultimately produced some of the most creative work in music history, but that creativity was founded on pragmatic vision.
Check out this week’s UNCOPYABLE video and see how you should have the same type of perception about YOUR business.
June 2, 2017
Celebrating Voodoo Doughnut – an Uncopyable Business
Today is National Doughnut Day, and that’s definitely worth celebrating. Who doesn’t like a good doughnut? Or even a bad one?
In honor of the day, here’s a shout out to our favorite UNCOPYABLE doughnut spot: Voodoo Doughnut in Portland, Oregon. Kelly went to college in Portland, and introduced us to Voodoo during one of our first visits. (After that, let’s just say we visited her a lot.)
Voodoo Doughnut makes delicious doughnuts. But that’s not what makes them Uncopyable. Delicious doughnuts aren’t the reason Voodoo has raving fans, an ever-present line that snakes out the door, and 60k followers on Instagram.
Voodoo Doughnut goes way beyond the ordinary, and makes for a great study. Voodoo gives you an opportunity to see many of the concepts in Steve’s new book, Uncopyable, in action:
Own a color.
“Good things come in pink boxes,” is one of Voodoo’s catch phrases. Their color is PINK. Their boxes are pink, and the photos of doughnuts on Social Media all have the same color background. Perusing their feed is like swimming in a sea of pink.
Use branding to differentiate yourself from the competition.
Voodoo’s signature doughnut – and namesake – looks like a Voodoo Doll. It’s filled with raspberry jelly, topped with chocolate frosting and comes with a pretzel “stake.” That’s what I call a morbidly delicious joke. And the joke is Uncopyable. If anyone tried to steal it, it would be over-the-top obvious.
Some doughnut shops think maple bacon doughnuts are creative. (Sea Salt Caramel, anyone?) All doughnut shops make cool new flavors now. But at Voodoo you can also get a doughnuts with names like “Old Dirty Bastard,” a “Pot Hole” or a “Maple Blazer Blunt.”
Yes, “Blunt” means what you think it means…
But wait, there’s more! Voodoo has “doughnut artists,” who create “tribute” doughnuts to commemorate the passing of an eclectic assortment of celebrities. These aren’t for sale, but are an important part of their brand. They’re shared on social media (and they’re amazing to look at).
Look at what everyone else is doing, and don’t do it.
Let’s talk about customer service. While other doughnut shops like Krispy Kreme offer drive-thrus and speedy service, at Voodoo you wait in line. When you finally get to the front, you squeeze your way through and peer into the case, ordering quickly so as not to piss off the potentially hangry folks behind you. Then you pay — IN CASH.
No crisp uniforms here, but quirkily tattooed folks with a lot of personality (at least at the location in Portland). They may not give amazing customer service in the traditional sense…but the customer doesn’t care.
Know your moose
Voodoo knows their moose want quality ingredients (including vegan doughnuts), personality, creativity and a unique experience. Their moose stampede in herds for the experience Voodoo Doughnut provides – and it’s Uncopyable to the last crumb.
Celebrating Voodoo Doughnuts on National Doughnut Day
Today is National Doughnut Day, and definitely worth celebrating. Who doesn’t like a good doughnut? Or even a bad one?
In honor of the day, here’s a shout out to our favorite doughnut spot: Voodoo Doughnuts in Portland, Oregon. Kelly went to college in Portland, and introduced us to Voodoo during one of our first visits. (After that, let’s just say we visited her a lot.)
The doughnuts at Voodoo are awesome, and the experience is Uncopyable. Their signature doughnut – and namesake – looks like a Voodoo Doll. It’s filled with raspberry jelly, topped with chocolate frosting and comes with a pretzel “stake.”
That’s what I call a morbidly delicious joke.
Yes, you can get a maple bacon doughnut there – that’s something all doughnut shops make now (as they should). But you can also get an “Old Dirty Bastard,” a “Pot Hole” or a “Maple Blazer Blunt.”
When Kelly’s God-family came to her college graduation, we were excited to take them to Voodoo. Once we were there, we waited in the long line as we debated various choices. (Yep, when you go there, be prepared to wait; that’s part of the experience. Along with your doughnut, you can buy a T-shirt that says “Worth the Weight.”)
Back at our hotel, we dug in, leaving nothing but a few crumbs behind. Yum.
Here’s to National Doughnut Day, and to Voodoo Doughnuts, for making their doughnuts, and the experience, Uncopyable.
May 29, 2017
Somebody Died to Give Us a Day Off
Admittedly, this is a rough, shocking title. It’s not meant as click bait, so to speak, but to bring up a harsh reality. Today is Memorial Day in the United States, a day remembering those who gave their lives in the service of our nation. We enjoy many freedoms because of those people and those who currently serve or have served in our armed forces.
I’m going off topic this week to say thank you to all of those people.
