Yes - A false start with a flat battery...

Last week saw five Threesiders piling into cars and heading to beautiful Jervis Bay to experience firsthand the whale watching that we’ve been busy promoting for the last few months.

This is a story of changing expectations and how managing a customer’s expectations throughout a journey could make or break a business.

Our plan to spend the night kicking back at the Husky Pub was squashed when we found it undergoing renovations (expectations lowered) but it looks well worth a visit once completed. Instead, we wandered down to the RSL.  At reception we were greeted by the staff member on duty, who asked where we were from and what we were up to.

When we told him we were taking to the water to see the whales his response was “You’ll be disappointed.  All you’ll see is big blobs of flesh floating around.” Somewhat taken aback and a little deflated we continued inside to enjoy a good value meal and the cheapest drinks we’ve bought in a while.  Still, our less than enthusiastic welcome had left a lingering bad taste.  For a town heavily reliant on tourism and whale and dolphin watching cruises, it is vital to the visitor experience that everyone involved in the industry contributes towards making that experience positive.  This undoubtedly results in return visits and positive word of mouth, which in turn can lead to increased visitation to the area. (expectations lowered).

Breakfast at Kiosk the next morning was a delicious surprise and a fabulous lunch at Supply later in the day revealed that there are some quality cafe experiences to be had in Huskisson (expectations raised). Excited and keen, we climbed onboard the Extreme Eco Cruise boat and headed out into Jervis Bay.

Our skipper Matt was very clear that we were about to have a nature based experience and that we were relying on a mix of luck and experience to find the whales in their own natural environment.  So with eyes peeled we began to skirt the Bay in search of these magnificent creatures.  The whales were being quite elusive but we finally found two rare Minke whales, enjoying a morning snack on a school of fish which was also being plundered by a flock of madly diving gannets (expectations being managed).

The Minkes weren’t all that interested in putting on a visual extravaganza for us so after watching them for a while we went in search of the more acrobatic humpbacks.  Matt understood that his passengers were after the wow factor of breaching whales but he was careful to emphasise that we had seen something really special with the Minkes (expectations being managed).

On the way back into the Bay we were treated to Oceanic dolphins playing in the wake of the boat, a seal lounging in the waves, albatross and a large flock of tiny brown birds that circumnavigate the world.  Now that is amazing!

Matt had been carefully managing our expectations throughout the cruise, and announced that what we had seen so far was pretty fantastic and anything else was going to be icing on the cake.  And we believed him.  We hadn’t seen the Humpbacks but we’d seen rare Minke whales, dolphins, seals, incredible birdlife and we’d loved it.  But then – the icing on the cake came along, and it was the most amazing icing EVER.

Shouts rang out as all heads on the boat swivelled to see a baby Humpback whale spy hopping and then completely launching itself out of the water, breaching all over the place.  Meanwhile, the calf’s mother was calmly swimming along, giving us an occasional glimpse of her absolutely massive size.  She was as big as a bus, a double-decker bus even.  She was HUGE!

This was without doubt, the most amazing animal encounter of my life.  I will never forget the sight of that playful humpback calf joyfully splashing around in the water, somehow propelling its enormous body completely out of the water while its mother swam alongside it.

Incredible, unforgettable, awe-inspiring! Every single person in that boat was on a high.  This is what the man at the RSL should have told us about whale watching.  That our lives would be richer for the experience.

That we would feel compelled to tell everyone we knew how great it was.  That it was one of life’s must-dos.

Smiles plastered on our faces, we left the boat bubbling over with excitement, checking out each other’s photos, plugging our whale sightings into the Wild About Whales phone app and generally raving about the experience.  No wonder so many people are Wild About Whales (expectations met).

There were a few key marketing learnings that I took out of this trip.

1. If you work in the tourism and hospitality industry, particularly in a town that is reliant on tourism, be enthusiastic, promote your assets and give your visitors a great experience.  If you focus on the experience, visitors will return and they will send their friends along too.  Realistically build expectations at every turn.
2. Managing the expectations of your customers is vital to ensuring they have a great experience.  Overselling and under-delivering can be devastating to your customer experience but managing expectations and sometimes over-delivering leaves your customers more than satisfied and fosters great word of mouth for your business.
3. Look for partnership marketing opportunities that will leverage the positive expectations visitors have developed.   If someone else is bringing the business to town (eg. Whales and the cruises) work out how you get a slice of the pie by working in partnership.

So, if you haven’t been whale watching before or it’s been a while, I highly recommend it.  Download the Wild About Whales mobile phone app, book a cruise in Jervis Bay with Dolphin Watch Cruises and get out there – you won’t regret it!

-Kathryn

I presented a number of online marketing training sessions for local businesses and tourism members and after one session got talking to one of the participants – Vicki Bidner who runs a local real estate agent in Forster.  After a short chat and discussion about online marketing and how she markets her business, we parted company and I was on my way back to Canberra.

A few days after I got home I got a package in the mail.  In this packahe were some chocolate brownies and a personalised thankyou card from Vicki.  I read the card that featured a photo of one of the best spots in the Great lakes and also the personalised message.  on the card there was also a QR code that linked to a short video I had shot in the session.  See the card below:

So at this point I was thinking:

(a)  mmm…. brownies
(b) Wow – what a great idea to send a thankyou to someone
(c) I am suitably impressed with Vicki Bidner

So always having my marketing mind ticking at a million miles an hour – I called Vicki and said thanks for the thanks.  Then spent the next 10 mins discussing the value of this type of thankyou to her business, the program she uses, past examples and her story.  Vicki wrote it all down for me and you can read Vicki’s story below with her examples.

For me the lessons out of this encounter were:

1. People value a thankyou,
2. It’s take time and something special to be remembered,
3. Innovate your message – Vicki uses Send out Cards,
4.  The simple things in life are often the best – does a thankyou on facebook or Google plus have the same impact as a personalised card and a packet of brownies?!
5. Make your marketing personal and make it mean something – because your competitors probably aren’t.

So will Vicki’s card turn into 100′s of house sales?  Probably not, but what they do lead to is fantastic word of mouth, great customer loyalty and a personal sense of satisfaction in Vicki’s business that people knows she cares.  Good to see someone breaking the Real Estate agent cowboy stereo-type.

Here’s Vicki’s story and thankyou to Vicki for sharing it.

- Todd

———————-

The Value of a Thankyou from Vicki

I looked into the SendOutCard (SOC) program initially as a marketing tool for my real estate business and also as a very efficient and inexpensive way to keep my relationship ongoing with my current clients, friends and family.

Previously I diligently spent many hours handwriting a lot of “thank you” cards etc to many clients however SOC offered a tool where I could create cards using my own handwriting font, photos, QR codes etc, in a much, much more cost effective (about 1/5^th of store price) and productive manner while still maintaining that personal touch. (and they are printed, stamped, enveloped and posted for you by SOC!)

I do not like receiving e-cards, e-newsletters, etc and I certainly don’t like getting a generic card or flyer that has obviously been produced to the masses and is not in any way personal.   Infact it is usually a company telling me how good they are (boring ….) and before I have finished reading  I have efficiently filed it in the bin!   My e-cards etc get filed exactly the same way in computer land and I haven’t even opened them!     My marketing and relationship maintenance obviously steers away from everything I have just complained about.

I like to send cards to all my clients on special occasions and make them about the person, not about me or my business.   I will give you a few examples :

Our last Christmas card was received with a many a fantastic comment, but my favourite story is a elderly lady (who actually didn’t buy her home from me, but was lovely and I wanted to keep in touch).

She told me this story ……. Her children (who are in their 60’s) called around in April and said, “Oh Mum why have you still got that Christmas Card up?  It was Christmas 4 months ago and it should have been taken down!”    She replied “I will tell you why, because every morning when I come out to make my cup of tea, I look at those 6 smiling faces and it brings me joy, every single day!”

She also told me that she has now taken the card down and replaced it with the Easter card, however she stressed that she had not thrown it out, she has infact kept every card I ever sent her.  I love the impact we have had on her life, and I would imagine that when she does move on – her children may well think of me to sell her home.

On Anzac Day last year I sent a poem I had read about a little girl who had lost her father in the war.   It took me 5 minutes to create the card but the response was amazing, people were touched in a very personal way and the many phone calls I received made me feel proud and about 10ft tall!

On Valentine’s day this year I sent a card celebrating the ones you love, whether it be a partner, an ex, a romance, your family or just yourself.   It was funny and thought provoking.  I got cards back and also many, many calls particularly from older people who reminisced with me about their romance/marriage proposals etc in the war years.   Very humbling and very touching that so many people wanted to share their lives with me.

This Easter I sent a card that was pretty plain, yet I got numerous calls, Easter cards in the mail and one lady also bought in 3 bags of Easter Eggs for me, saying that she really appreciated the effort I went to, to include her in my card list.   She felt special (as she should) however that card went out to hundreds, but because it was addressed specifically to her it felt like a one on one.

With the phenomenal response from my clients, friends and family who also slowly became curious and wanted to become involved, I realized that the business aspect of SOC was also very appealing.   It is a get rich slow business which creates a hell of a lot of fun and pleasure on the journey.   I can honestly say “even if I didn’t make a cent on the business, the amount of direction and joy it has brought into my personal and professional lives has been priceless”.

(UPDATE:  Here was a follow up note from Vicki)

The local Commonwealth Bank revamped their site and invited everyone in the street to the opening party.  I sent a card purely to say “thank you”.

A few weeks later I received a call from Commonwealth Bank HO and said I had been recommended to list 3 x mortgagee-in-possession properties.  HO were dumbfounded when I told them that we did not bank with the Commonwealth Bank and said it was highly unusual for the business not to go to a client in real estate, but said I obviously had a great rapport and great respect from that branch.

The truth is, they appreciated my card (at a cost of .93c I might add!) and in return I got potentially $30,000 in commission!

I would love you (and any/all of your networking friends) to check out my website :   www.sendoutcards.com/vicki_bidner

Watch the video and send some cards for free (my shout!)

Cheers – Vicki

Actually, come to think of it their ads on TV have always been a bit over hyped for me, can Boost Juice really make you jump off the walls and run around and have fun? Is that giving a bit much credit to the energy value of a bit of ice and fruit juice, this ain’t Red Bull you know.  But TV advertising aside, I like the experiential marketing of the product on site, the price is right for me, they have a simple loyalty program (VIBE club), and the product is straight forward and consistently good.  My juice is the same in T2 Sydney Airport, Melbourne CBD and the Canberra Centre.  Wait a minute….consistency, service, young kids – this is starting to smell like that shop with the funny clown looking guy and the golden arches…..

So finally here is something to set Boost apart - a new adults only version of their advertising – with puppets. Yes, Puppets.  Boost’s new campaign introduces Mary Mango and Ron Banana to the world.  Styled off Entertainment Tonight presenters with a bit of Ron Burgundy ‘anchor man’ thrown in, these ads bring a new grown up Hollywood hype to the brand.  This campaign that has been launched using a social marketing mini site ‘Inside Juice’ http://www.insidejuice.com.au/ which sees a blog, facebook profile and no doubt there’s a twitter feed in there somewhere(wait – found it!) feeding juicy goss to the world.

Below is the 3rd in a series of Boost commercials and this one goes ‘ behind the scenes’ in the studio.

4 hours into the campaign and some of the blogs comments are interesting.  What interests me is if they are going to moderate, respond or engage with these comments or if just  a hang it in the wind and see what happens campaign (interesting comment about the yank accents).  Would love to see some onsite integration of the campaign in stores with Mary or Ron’s twitter feed being displayed on the plasma screens they have in most stores.   Taking online to the streets, come on Boost – you know you want it!

2008 seemed to be the year of the bad customer service experience for me.  From Banks, to Telcos and hardware stores, all the big guys seemed to have me on some blacklist and wanted to test their latest ‘how to lose a customer’ tactics on me.  I timed how long I spent on hold with different companies throughout the year and came up with the following stats:

Optus – (Telco) Get a home / office phone and internet line connected and then fixed once it was connected but not working -11 calls, 19 operators – 191 mins on the phone

Telstra – (Telco) Fix a billing issue that they created – 8 calls – 84 mins on the phone

Medibank Private (health insurance) -Find out if I could claim any more osteo on my extra account -3 call – 59 mins on the phone

Nokia – (Manufacturer / retailer)  find out when my nokia mobile phone was coming back from repair – 4 calls – 46 mins on the phone – All of it on hold – I never actually spoke to anyone.

So optus – Congratulations guys, you win this year.  Consider my time spent typing this blog post as your award.  Sorry Nokia, Telstra and Medibank, there is always next year to steal more of my time, frustate me and waste my time trying to fix problems with products that you marketed to me, convincined me to buy and then failed to deliver a great experience with.

But wait – what about rewarding great service and reccomending the best experiences of the year.  Well this is what prompted me to write this post (and avoid doing what I should have been doing).

I just walked into a coffee shop in Kingston in Canberra, it’s called Idelic Cafe.  Second time in 2 years I have been into this cafe so I am hardly a regular.  I walked up to the counter and asked what they were better at making – Smoothies or Fresh Squeezed Juices – ‘What’s your speciality’ is what I was aksing.  3 staff told me what they thought was best and then Andrew behind the coffee machine said he could make me an Espresso Banna Smoothie.  It wasn’t on the menu, I have never had one and I didn’t even know how much it cost. Just because they reccomended it and promised me it would be good, I said yes.

I believed them, I bought it, I drank it, I loved it and in within 30 secs of drinking it I had told one other person on the phone (I got my mobile back thanks Nokia) about this great smoothie, at this great cafe and reccomended we should come here.

They didn’t confuse me, put me on hold, over charge me and most importantly they didn’t waste my time.    I paid them for the smoothie and rewarded them with a referral.

In 2009 optus, please be more like Andrew and Idelic cafe.  You might think that your product is a bit different from a local coffee shop, but your customer service doesn’t need to be. In 2009, please Optus, make customer service your speciality.