If you didn’t know, Seth is author of Purple Cow, The Big Moo and many other business/marketing best-selling books. So the naming couldn’t be more Godinesque. I thought maybe the proprietor was a big Godin fan and followed the Moo train all the way. However, I quickly found Seth would never run this store.

As I went to place my order, I saw this yellow sign on the counter (click to see all). No credit cards with the sorriest excuse… “sorry no credit card system.” Cash or credit wasn’t the issue. It was an obvious lack of concern for what the customer wants.

I was walking out puzzled. How could a friendly staff with great selection and a well-decorated store have a sign like this? The only bovine connection between this ice cream shop and Godin’s books are in name. If you’re going to steal from Seth’s marketing ideas, the least you can do is try be remarkable in a positive way.

Seth would never take away payment options or turn away pet owners with laptops paying with Visa. He preaches removing all barriers, drawing customers in and stealing a name obviously isn’t enough. While taking only cash was memorable, it’s was far from a purple cow! What roadblocks are you building for your customers and how can you turn a negative into a remarkable positive?

Update: I received a comment from the owner of The Frozen Moo. He misinterpreted my post when I said he was “stealing” from Seth. The title was a play on words since he’s written two books (Purple Cow & The Big Moo) that were so close to Jack’s business name and with the cow decor … it seemed like an obvious fit.

Jack made some pretty good points. It’s tough to give up $0.30 or $0.50 credit card fees when selling $2 cones of ice cream. I understand that as I have a good friend who works for a large ice cream manufacturer.

He also said the health department won’t let him have pets in the store and the neighboring business has a wifi station.

Again, I wish Jack no ill will and there’s no doubt running any business is tough. He has good rationale for all three items, but I do think the customer just reads what they’re unable to do rather than admiring his store for all the good things it offers.

When the week ends, they post the archives on the wall. That’s it. No marketing campaign to convert points into free java, customer manifestos or corporate speak about how much they love their customers. Just a simple plan that draws attention and makes customers feel appreciated.

Taking pictures isn’t your thing, here a few other easy tips to start spreading the love.

• Get out and engage your customers (Converstations)
• Establish trust with the customer (Customer Experience Crossroads)
• Giving the personal touch (Customers Rock!)
• Build rapport by being positive (Customer Service Experience)

#2 – They Are Always Right – Customers may not always be right, but they should walk away from (almost) any situation satisfied.

#5 – Deliver Your Promises – The key to your future success it taking care of today’s business. Track records are hard to escape.

#9 – Their Friends Are Your Friends – Whether it’s a prospect or long-time client, don’t be afraid to ask for leads. Most people want to be seen as a resource to others and if you take care of #5, then referrals will come.

If you need help making money for on AdSense, you MUST watch his video on how to make $25,000.

Photo taken at TBD.com‘s offices (those are post-it notes).

I’m working on a new web show (who isn’t) and our first episode went online today to gather some early feedback. I received a few emails with very positive responses and our director said, “I don’t care about that. I only want to hear negative comments. We need them to get better.”

Wow! I’d become the manager with the ugly dress shirt and the tie chain. I was so pumped about getting good reviews, I failed to ask what could be done to improve.

We all say we want feedback and proudly put our “Contact Us” button on our sites, but as Cam mentioned… it’s more than just asking. It’s what you ask, how much you ask and the format your questions are given. You can’t make user feedback difficult on the user if you really want an honest response. What you can do is ask the right questions and really seek out the answers. If you ask the right questions in a sincere manner, you might just learn something.

Photo Flickr credit: Shawnblog

I politely told him I didn’t need help carrying my bags to the room and he THEN offered me his card. The typical next step for a bellman is to grudgingly walk away with nothing to show for his effort. Craig had an impressive and yet surprising response. He offered to be a local resource during my time in St. Louis. He didn’t have a disclaimer to call during his shift and then the surprises continued. Craig walked us to the elevator and explained the directions off the 6th floor.

It’s a shame this is a surprise, but as the elevator closed… all I could say was “Wow!” Craig was a nice reminder a little extra effort can astound customers. I didn’t feel obligated to tip Craig, but I did have to tell his boss of his great effort.