Cat's Eye Writer

Starbucks, Ben and Jerry's and Customer Surprises

Last month, two big companies treated their customers to a surprise. Well, sort of. 

On March 23, Starbucks hosted their Free Pastry Day. On their website, they said,

 We love you. It's not Valentine's Day or our birthday or anything like that. We feel like doing something nice for you, 'just because.'

Wow. They made it sound so spontaneous. Even though they deliver the same surprise on the same day every year, so, technically, it isn't a surprise.

The coupon on their website entitled people to one free dessert at any store.

On the same day, Ben and Jerry's—now owned by Unilever, one of the world's largest corporations—had their Free Cone Day.

Hmm. Wonder which one started theirs first.

We can do Starbucks and Ben and Jerry's one better

Aside from the marketing managers in corporate boardrooms who plan and execute a flawless Free Day every year, then sit back all smug because they had surprised their customers again, what I really wonder is:

As solopreneurs and small biz owners, how can we surprise our customers?

Most of us don't have marketing departments to plan our surprises. And besides, aren't the best surprises totally unexpected, in-the-moment kinds of things? The things that really get people talking about us and our businesses?

Like the pay-it-forward thing I saw recently on the local TV news. It happened to be a Starbucks (again). You might have heard about it. One morning, at the drive-up window, a guy decided to pay for his drink and for the customer in the car behind him.

It's a little confusing because it was pay-it-forward to the person in back of you. (Okay, that was just my muddled writer's brain at work.)

Still, this one act took on a life of its own and by the afternoon, the string of pay-it-forwards was unbroken.

The thing that made it so cool was that it was spontaneous. It was totally unexpected. It was a surprise.

And it made the news.

How can we treat our customers to a surprise now and then—one that will naturally get them telling stories about their experience with us, which is our version of being "in the news"?

Might we surprise a customer in online checkout by throwing in a free gift before they finalize their purchase?

Can we send a link to an article that solves a problem we know they've been struggling with?

Might we say, "I don't think you really need this (fill in the product or service). This other thing will work just as well and it's less expensive." ?

Or, "I took care of that for you but it took so little time that I'm not going to charge you for it." ?

Do you surprise your customers from time to time? How has it worked for you?

Trains, Planes and Automobiles: One Woman's Audacious Goals

Give me a ticket for an aeroplane

Ain't got time to take a fast train…

That's my tribute to Alex Chilton. The songwriter, guitarist and lead singer for the 60s band The Box Tops died Wednesday. And The Letter was a number one international hit in 1967.

And did you know that when the producer said to remove the jet sounds in the background, Chilton put his guitar down and threatened to walk out? They stayed in and today are one of the most memorable parts of the song.

Many groups, including the Jefferson Airplane, have sung it since, but I still think the Box Tops' version was best.

If there's anyone who knows all about aeroplanes and trains, it's my friend, Lori Richardson, sales trainer, speaker, consultant and owner of Score More Sales.

Lori is full of ideas to bring entrepreneurs together in fun, different ways. I was part of one of her schemes and wrote about it in Midnight Train to Portland.

On New Year's Day 2010, as she dove into the frigid waters of Birch Bay in the Pacific Northwest, Lori had some new crazy goals on her mind.

She resurfaced with her Fabulous 50 Project. And, man, is it ambitious.

(But if anyone can pull it off, it's her.)

The 50 Times 4 Project

Lori has wrapped four big goals into a project that she calls a "burst of appreciation" (actually, 50 bursts of appreciation) for entrepreneurs, small biz owners and sales pro's. By the end of 2010 she is committing to:

1. Speaking in 50 cities. No sales pitches. Just lots of ideas for encouraging innovation, inspiration and collaboration, tips for growing revenues and a batch of success stories thrown in for an extra shot of inspiration.

How's she doing? Lori already has 21 cities on her schedule. She'll be in Boston this weekend (stop #6), in Providence, RI on Tuesday(Stop #7)  and is scheduling new tour stops all the time.

2. Getting 50 new clients. Lori's goal is 50 new clients by the end of 2010, averaging $2,000 in revenue each. "I'm demonstrating what others can do—and should do—" she said, "to document business progress where they can see it. In my case, all will be able to see it." I'm impressed.

How's she doing? Lori reports that this goal is in progress and trending upward.

3. Supporting 50 nonprofit causes. Lori is an accomplished professional auctioneer who has brought in millions of dollars for hundreds of business, civic and social causes. She especially likes teaching nonprofits how to use for-profit strategies to raise more funds. Her goal is to be an auctioneer for 50 nonprofit fundraising events by the end of 2010.

How's she doing? When I last checked, she had 20 auctions booked or completed. Almost halfway there!

4. Walking 50 minutes every day. Okay, in my heart, I think this must be one of the most ambitious goals. Hey, we get busy, life happens and, well…

How's she doing? Lori says her results are in the "80 percent range." With her travel schedule, I'm thinking that's pretty good. Better than good, maybe.

What Lori needs from you:

These are amazing goals. And Lori invites you to be a part of this project—in big ways or small:

• work with Lori to schedule an event in your city 

• tell Lori your own small biz success story (you may even be in a video or be featured on All Business.com)

• share ideas for worthy nonprofits that could use some major fundraising help

• offer to be a co-presenter when she stops in your city

To get involved or find a tour stop near you, go here.

Did you make any audacious goals for 2010? If you did, how's that going for you?