Two very different approaches, both with their own charms…
New school: The Libraria da Vila bookstore in Sao Paulo. [via KV]
Old school: Libreria Acqua Alta in Venice. [thx JL]
About Matt Linderman
Now: The creator of Vooza, "the Spinal Tap of startups." Previously: Employee #1 at 37signals and co-author of the books Rework and Getting Real.
Want something to blow up? Tell the world about it on a Tuesday morning. Avoids the Monday avalanche people face and gives you the rest of the week to get play.
Want something to fade away? Tell the world about it on a Friday afternoon. It’ll fade into the weekend.
(Note: Once you realize this, it’s also fun to start noticing what news gets released on Friday afternoons — politicians are especially good at using this technique.)
American Apparel is now selling a Bag-O-Scraps. Great example of selling your by-product.
Sympathize. “I can understand why you are upset,” or, “yes, I can see the problem,” or, “I am so sorry that we have put you through this” will go a long way to calming most people.
Act. “I am going to talk to the person who does our scheduling,” or, “I am going to go back to production to take care of this myself,” or 100 other things you can say that will solve the problem.
Vindicate. It’s important to let the customer know that this isn’t business as usual. In my custom-framing business, if we frame something improperly we say, “We have a quality control inspector in addition to your sales consultant who checked over your order. They usually catch things like this. Obviously they dropped the ball. I’m really embarrassed. This kind of performance did not get us where we are. Again, I’m really sorry.”
Eat something. Customers did not give you money to get bad service. Many times it is appropriate to give them something. A restaurant might offer a free dessert, another company could offer free delivery or a discount. It costs a lot to find a new customer; it is certainly worth something to keep an existing one.
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How to S.A.V.E. Customer Service. Only thing I don’t like here: “The quality control inspector dropped the ball and I’m really embarrassed.” Good service shouldn’t necessitate throwing one of your own team members under the bus this way.
How to S.A.V.E. Customer Service. Only thing I don’t like here: “The quality control inspector dropped the ball and I’m really embarrassed.” Good service shouldn’t necessitate throwing one of your own team members under the bus this way.
Think about the different areas of your life (career, relationships, spiritual, health, etc.) – and rate your satisfaction in each area from 1 to 10. Go through every area you rated a 5, 6, 7, or 8 – and replace it with a 1! Never settle for “it’s not so bad” – and instead face up to what you really want.
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Derek Sivers summarizing a lesson from the book “Personal Development for Smart People” by Steve Pavlina. Come to think of it, this is a pretty good way to rate feature ideas too. Leave in the essential, omit the rest.
Derek Sivers summarizing a lesson from the book “Personal Development for Smart People” by Steve Pavlina. Come to think of it, this is a pretty good way to rate feature ideas too. Leave in the essential, omit the rest.
Copyeditor’s marks. Going over the edited manuscript of Rework we just got back from the publisher. Never realized how much copyeditors really have a language of their own.
[On Writing] Birdwell swimwear wants "no more of this wishy washy stuff and nonsense"
Lots of surfers, lifeguards, and paddle boarders are big fans of Birdwell swimwear. It’s definitely not because the company provides cutting edge web design:
Oof, it’s like 1997 all over again. And the site’s tone is reminiscent of a surly old shopkeeper that’s going to sell you what you want only if you play ball first. Check out the curious combination of curmudgeonry and “we’re all family here” folksiness…
Don’t send them too many emails:
Please do not spend 22 emails discussing what you want — and then say, “that’s what I want, when can you ship” — you know what you want, I only answer questions. I don’t remember all your decisions. Write it down and send it to me with the name address and payment information.
No more “wishy washy stuff” about overnight shipping:
Continued…If you tell me you really want it tomorrow and it is possible to do so? You have requested expedited carrier service and will be charged accordingly … No more of this wishy washy stuff and nonsense. You know the difference between right and wrong, fair and unfair. You don’t want to join the One Thousand Club. If you ask for expedited service, but I don’t remember when I quote the price? You are charged for the service you receive. Okay, go ahead and teach me a lesson. Welcome to the Club.
Tennis-warehouse.com makes demoing easy
Neat way for online tennis retailer to set itself apart from typical stores:
Anyone in the continental 48 Unites States may demo up to four racquets for six full days…The racquets will be delivered by UPS within two days. You return them the following week on the same day of the week you received them. For example, if they arrive on a Monday, you ship them back the following Monday. Included in the racquet box is a postage-paid return label so all you have to do is seal the racquets back in the box, put the return label over the original label and take the box to a staffed UPS drop off center or any UPS driver.
I went to hear the author Michael Connelly speak in Seattle last night. His books are great — thrillers with more depth (and much more variety) than most. Unlike many authors, he talked about his work rather than read from his latest book. Turns out he does it the “Getting Real” way (although he never called it that). No outline. No database of characters (even though he brought back characters from a book he wrote 15 years earlier). Basically, he said he starts with the first scene in mind, and the last. Then he just starts. Sometimes he gets stuck (which is why he brought back a character from 15 years ago). But he said he wants to spend his time working on his book, not “working” on outlines and plans.
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An email from SvN reader Harvey Motulsky
An email from SvN reader Harvey Motulsky
MSNBC: "We learn more from success than failure"
Learning from failure is overrated and its redux [both from SvN] sparked a healthy debate. Well, now there’s a new study that backs up the idea “we” learn more from successes than from mistakes. Ok, it’s a study of monkeys. But still…