I am thrilled to be able to host another guest post from Chip R. Bell this week. Chip’s new book, Sprinkles is available on Amazon now and it will motivate and elevate all levels of service in your organization.
When I was a little boy my best friend and I constructed a “phone line” using a long string with an empty bean can on either end. The coolest use of the “phone” was from tree to tree. I lived in the country so there was no nearby house to which to string line across yards or alley. When you spoke right into the bean can, the sound carried over the string to be heard by the ear in the can on the other end. We could tell smutty jokes and trade secrets without parental eavesdropping. Now, we have Twitter between “trees.” And, all your friends can have a string connected to your “bean can.”
Organizations are still trying to figure what to make of Twitter and blogs (and all their social media birds of a feather) and how to capitalize on the modern day “bean can.” Since they can “listen in” on the “crowdalogue,” some treat it as a tool to monitor “chatter,” hopefully revealing customer issues and interests. Some are using it as an early warning device actually intervening to right a service wrong in the making.
Customers want connections that are personalized, specific and valuable. They do not want to waste time with scattergun clutter from marketers. They want connections that are authentic and natural, not PR pap sanitized and hyped by some speechwriter. They want connections that engage their heart as much as their reason—service creativity that creates a story to share. They want service with sprinkles!
Sprinkles adorn cupcakes and cookies. They make the recipient swoon not just salivate. They make a dessert the subject of a story, not just the substance of a dessert. Innovative service is like sprinkles on a cupcake—turning a ho-hum or pretty good service experience into one people want to tweet and blog about. It is the simple and unexpected action that tells customers they are special.
It is interesting that the word “tweet” is the sound happy birds make. The same is true for service with sprinkles. And, like the newspaper and notes of cyberspace, sprINKles create the “ink” of social media communication–the byproduct of advocacy and the stock and trade of loyal fans. The word “blog” comes from the word “weblog” meaning “online diary.” It is the storytelling ingredient that makes your customers want to grab their “bean cans” to chirp to the trees nearby.
Sprinkles is the new book from Chip R Bell. Just as sprinkles make a good cupcake special, this amazing book provides the perfect recipe for elevating the loyalty of today’s picky, fickle, and vocal customers.
Chip R. Bell is a renowned keynote speaker and best-selling author. His newest book, Sprinkles: Creating Awesome Experiences Through Innovative Service, is available on Amazon: http://bit.ly/AMZsprinkles. Find more resources at: http://bit.ly/CBsprinkles or visit www.chipbell.com to connect with Chip.
Photo credit: Pixabay
