The Ultimate Corporate Entrepreneur

The Spirit of Entrepreneurial Service

When was the last time you experienced really great service? Where did you find it? Was it at your local retail store or were you bowled over by great customer service via a technical support site?

Maybe it came from a small shop, a start-up business, or even a global company with service centers around the world. 

Those who know me find out early on how passionate I am about service. I’ve spent most of my career delivering great service to my customers, whether internal to the company or external.

This is both a blessing and a curse for those who now serve me. The blessing because when I receive it I scream it from the rooftops (well, not literally), but I do share it with my personal network. Over and over again. And the curse? Well, I share that as well.

Getting the Basics Right

What makes the difference between good and great service? It’s the unexpected things that go beyond someone just doing their job. I want to be treated to the same level of service when I have a problem as when you excitedly made the initial sale.

Please keep in mind that consistency isn’t about continuing to do the same level of service, but surprising me with innovative ways you’ve improved the service since the last time I visited. 

An example of great service in my own backyard, comes from a family-run European-style coffee house that opened in my neighborhood where competitors surround it like the three men on the boat in the movie Jaws.

Just the place to hang out, Bellano Coffee not only makes great coffee (expected), offers their own Internet connection at no cost (a plus), but their personal level of service to customers continues to wow me!

Influential Selling

Years ago I wrote a customer letter to the folks at Virgin-Atlantic because my daughter and I had experienced outstanding service from one of their flight attendants in Coach, no less. I must have shocked them with my outpouring (most folks write letters when they receive bad service), because I received a personal response that was as surprised as it was sincere.

Blogging Blarney: 3 Paths to Finessing a Business Deal

The Irish side of me couldn’t resist posting something on St. Patrick’s Day. Rest assured that it’s business as usual – at least, until after hours.

Persuasive selling is about getting someone to act differently. I’m discovering that blogging is a great way to do just that. Recently I closed an international deal with a client who found me via my blog. Not my web site, mind you, but by getting to know me through my posts over two months time. I’ve even attracted participants to my teleclasses via my blog site. Not too shabby.

Speakers know that whether you present to four people or four hundred people, you always give it your best shot. Why? Because you never know who’s in the audience. The same holds true when it comes to blogging.

It’s all about using a tool that helps you open new doors, explore new opportunities, initiate and close your next deal!

What Does Likeability Got to Do with It?

Can your “likeability” quotient determine success in business and the workplace? You’re in luck if you think you were short changed at birth.

Granted, personality is no guarantee of financial and career success. But it can certainly open the right doors leading to both, not to mention a healthier and happier life, according to Likeability Factor’s author, Tim Sanders. 

So I checked out the book Likeability Factor: How to Boost Your L-Factor and Achieve Your Life’s Dreams. A person’s L-Factor – friendliness, relevance, empathy, and realness – will challenge many a belief system where managing by fear is the workplace norm.

I wanted to immediately send this book to half a dozen male managers. Why no women on my list?