Monthly Archives: January 2010

Is Customer Service “Falling Down”?

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I recently saw a late night re-run of a terrific action/crime film starring Michael Douglas and Robert Duvall. This 1993 film, Falling Down, centers on Douglas’s character, William Foster, who is a recently divorced and unemployed former defense engineer.

The film follows him as he goes on a violent rampage across the city of L.A. trying to get home in time for his daughter’s birthday party. Along the way, a series of encounters, both trivial and provocative, cause him to react with violence and make sardonic observations on life, poverty, the economy and commercialism.

One particular scene takes place as the main character finds himself in a fast food restaurant after several extremely stressful events on an unusually hot summer day.

What happens next is classic, and I’m certain viewers will immediately identify with his frustration with the total lack of customer service he receives from the staff and the manager of Whammy Burger. We’ve all been there, we’ve all felt the same, but fortunately we avoided responding the way Foster did.

This short clip will have you sitting on the edge of your seat while realizing this scene could occur most anywhere at any time in today’s chaotic environment. I’ve shared this clip with many seminar audiences while defining the term “Vigilante Consumer.” I can’t think of a better way of explaining this term and demonstrating the possible consequences, although extreme in this case, of poor service.

The title of the film, referring to Foster’s mental collapse, is taken from the title of the nursery rhyme London Bridge is Falling Down, which appears several times during the film.

Watch this clip and see if you don’t relate to his frustration at not being able to order breakfast two minutes after they switched to the lunch menu. You’ll also laughingly identify with his comparison of the skimpy unattractive Whammy burger in his hand to the thick, juicy, scrumptious photo on the menu board.

If customer service is critical to your success, you might consider sharing this clip with your staff followed by a discussion of how Foster might react after a visit to your establishment.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Inevitable Retail Hits

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We knew it was going to happen. Just glance out your car window as you pass your local strip malls. Try to walk 25 yards through your local mall without seeing boarded up stores. The 2009 holiday sales period was one of the worst on record. That, coupled with very little change in the nation’s economic situation and the growth of e-commerce revenues, made it quite obvious that our retail industry would have to adjust to consistently poor performance. The looming question at this point is “who’s next?”

“24/7 Wall Street,” a Delaware corporation set up to run a financial news and opinion operation over the Internet, looked at a number of large retail companies to see which had the largest fall-offs in same-store sales in 2009.

The list below includes the eight store chains most likely to close a significant number of locations this year and an estimate of the number of outlets they will have to shutter.

Zale fired its CEO and the two senior retail executives who work for him. Zale has 1,930 outlets operating under the names Zales Jewelers, Zales Outlet, Gordon’s Jewelers, Peoples Jewellers, Mappins Jewellers and Piercing Pagoda. Zale will have to close its 200 worst-performing stores before the year is over.

Abercrombie & Fitch posted the worst same-store sales results of any large retailer in America during 2009. Caris & Co, the research firm, recently expressed strong doubt about how it might recover. The firm operates a number of brands including Abercrombie & Fitch, abercrombie, Hollister, and RUEHL. The company has 1,129 outlets and will have to retreat to its early 2007 store count of 950.

GameStop, the massive video-game retailer, said its holiday 2009 results were a disappointment.The entire video game industry is in trouble. GameStop has 6,200 stores worldwide and 24/7 Wall Street expects that at least 400 of those will be closed.

Barnes & Noble, the largest book store company in the U.S., is up against a rapid increase in book sales over the internet which is dominated by Amazon and includes large retailers such as Wal-Mart. The rise of the e-reader and e-books is also in the process of undermining “bricks-and-mortar” book buying traffic. Its peer Borders recently closed 200 of its Waldenbooks outlets and fired 1,500 people. Barnes & Noble has 775 outlets and 636 college bookstore. Barnes & Noble will have to push online sales, marketing of its Nook e-reader, and close at least 100 stores.

Hot Topic shares were recently downgraded as the firm posted awful results last year. The company operated 681 Hot Topic stores in all 50 states and Puerto Rico and 156 Torrid stores. Hot Topic says the” idea behind the Hot Topic concept essentially began in the 1960s with bootleggers selling tee shirts at concert venues.” It had better go back to the original model. The company is in such bad shape it will have to close 200 stores this year.

Dillard’s has 315 stores in 29 states. It will end up closing at least 25 to stay in good shape.

JCPenney is still profitable, and its only real problem is that it is spread too thin. The firm has just over 1,100 stores and needs to “right size” itself to the economy by cutting 75.

Retail experts are predicting things will get worse before they get better. Only the strong will survive and even those retailers will have to make drastic changes to do so. Those who sit and wait for things to get better will soon disappear from the scene. This reality is sad but true and has already proven to be true.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

The Perfect Storm

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A “perfect storm” is an expression that describes an event where a rare combination of circumstances will aggravate a situation drastically. And that’s what’s happening today across this great nation.

While so many organizations are simply sitting dormant waiting for things to get better, others have decided to take action in an effort to make things better.

The rare combination of circumstances coming together today include chaos, competition, and creativity … all leading to major CHANGE you probably thought you’d never see … and yet current news releases inform us that many changes are already taking place. Here are three you might find interesting.

Burger King Planning to Sell Beer

Yes, it sounds like a whopper, but it’s true. The burger chain already has a Whopper Bar at Universal Citywalk near the theme parks in Orlando, Florida, and it plans to open others in Miami Beach, New York City, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas. The beers will be mostly domestic, such as Bud and Miller, and will be served in aluminum bottles selling for about $4.25. Burger King is also experimenting with several combo offerings.

McSaloon Will Offer Win Coolers

In an attempt to counter Burger King and maintain its position as the #1 burger chain on earth, McDonald’s has announced that it will start selling wine coolers at its South Beach locations in Miami beginning the middle of March this year. Interestingly enough, that kick-off date correlates with Spring Break. Called McWineCooler Swirls, the alcoholic beverages will be served during McHappy Hour from 4-7 p. m. daily at the McSaloon section of the restaurant. The beverages will not be served in the main family area of the restaurant.

Kroger Get Creative

Creativity isn’t limited to the fast food industry. Kroger has seen the benefit of expanding its offering as well in hopes of weathering the Perfect Storm.

Kroger Marketplace in Frisco, Texas, has opened up a new 123,000-square-foot store that greatly expands upon the products the supermarket typically sells. In addition to everything you would expect to find in a Kroger store, this one also sells home furnishings like dining room sets, bookshelves and lamps as well as toys, jewelry and more. Oh, and if on the way out you suddenly experience the urge to splurge on a diamond pendant or pick up an engagement ring, a Fred Meyer Jewelers is conveniently located at the front of the store. (It turns out that Kroger, the country’s second-largest grocery chain, also owns the Fred Meyer Jewelry chain, which happens to be the nation’s third-largest jewelry retailer).

Target Targets Food

If you haven’t already noticed, Target has been expending its line of food products for the past several years and the response has been very positive. So much so, that it is now testing fresh meat products in a number of test stores. If it catches on like its other food products have, Kroger may be concerned.

You can bet there are a host of competitors watching what happens as a result of these creative attempts to survive and thrive. If they fail, you will hear a chorus of “I told you so.” If they succeed, you’ll suddenly see a lot of them scrambling to do the same. However, there’s a good chance that it will be too late.

To succeed today, you’d better be willing to do what it takes to weather that “perfect storm” that confronts us all! Get creative, take a chance, put forth an effort or pay the price as you simply sit and watch!

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Time for Action!

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This morning I saw a short but powerful quote from Tom Peters. It’s certainly relevant in regard to our current chaotic environment world wide. Peters suggested:

  • Stay angry!
  • Change the world!
  • Never give up!
  • Never give in!

We’ve recently seen evidence that this strategy does produce results. It’s simply sad that we have to resort to using it! It seems people have to be pushed to the wall and forced to feel that we’re not going to take it anymore before we finally take action. Note the recent election results in Massachusetts. Some think that occurred to send a message to a particular party. Those people are wrong. That was a message sent to ALL politicians that the citizens of our country are angry. I hope both parties got the message.

Peter’s words should be a battle cry for anyone who is fed up with the status quo and wants to see positive change in their personal lives, community, workplace, organization, state or country.

History has proven time and time again that productive change occurs when society reaches the point of refusing to tolerate its current status. Get angry … but channel that anger into positive action to make significant change in areas that are important to you. Network with those who share your concern. Develop a plan of action. Execute and make things happen! You’ll be glad you did.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Carpe Diem – A Strategy?

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Most everyone has heard this phrase from time to time. It’s Latin for “seize the day.” Actually it means “pluck the day” but most have adapted the word “seize.” Other translations include: ” live now while you can,” “make the most of today” or “enjoy the present.” Here’s one I’ll bet you didn’t know … Carpe Diem is also a line of soft drinks distributed by Red Bull in the United Kingdom and other European countries.

I see this phrase a lot. I see it in books, on signs hanging on walls everywhere. I have a Carpe Diem lapel pin which I often wear to speaking engagements. I even own a large 16 x 20 photo of the 1913 Michigan State University football team, all twelve of them, dressed in their old fashioned uniforms holding their leather faceguardless helmets …. titled Carpe Diem. It was given to me by a dear friend as a reminder of one of our favorite movies, Dead Poets Society.

Robin Williams is a comedic genius. Like him or not, this raving maniac owns any stage on which he appears. He runs, skips, jumps, falls and anything else it takes to prove his point and entertain his audience.

However, 21 years ago Williams starred in a film that won the Academy Award for best writing and was nominated for Best Director and Best Picture. Robin, himself, was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his portrayal of English teacher John Keating of Welton Academy in Vermont. Set in 1959 at a conservative and aristocratic boys prep school, it tells the story of a very unusual teacher who inspires his students to change their lives of conformity through his teaching of poetry and literature.

His first lesson is unorthodox by Welton standards, whistling the 1812 Overture and taking them out of the classroom to focus on the idea of carpe diem (Latin for “seize the day”) by looking at the pictures of former Welton students displayed in a trophy case in the hallway (very similar to the framed photo in my office). The message Keating shares with his students in this scene is a classic that will live forever in the annals of filmdom. See his message yourself below and if you haven’t seen this movie, you’ll want to rent it after seeing this clip. One last thought … how often are YOU Seizing the Day?

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Take a Break That Can Make a Difference

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Every once in a while we need to pause for a few moments and take a personal inventory of the many facets of our current existence. Consider “functional blindness” in your everyday life. That’s simply overlooking something because we see or hear it so often. We soon begin to take it for granted and even ignore it altogether.

How many times have you heard the following statements or something very close to them?

  • “People come into your life for a reason!”
  • “Make every day count!”
  • “Everything happens for a reason!”
  • “Believe in yourself!”
  • “Be proud of yourself!”

You’ve probably heard these very familiar, mundane quips thousands of times in the past … but have you really taken a moment out of your busy day to think about each of them. Have you truly considered the wisdom and value in each statement. Probably not. We’re just too busy. Would we benefit from do so? Most certainly … in several different ways. Relax, re-count, re-load, and reward yourself for so many things we take for granted.

In 2004, Laura Burns did just that by creating this very short video to remind herself of some of the more important things in life. Take a look. It’s only 186 seconds out of the 86,400 seconds you’ve been gifted with today. My guess is that this will be the best time investment you’ve made today.

As you watch the video, think about the genuine value of her words as they could apply to your life. When you’ve finished, you’ll feel a little more relaxed, you may have identified a few areas of concern, and you’ll have a better appreciation of what life truly offers you on a daily basis. Enjoy!

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Grandpa Wouldn’t Understand!

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Watching the many football bowl games televised on so many networks for the past six weeks brought back some very fond memories of time spent with my grandfather. We used to sit in front of that old black and white TV over the holidays watching the bowl games we had waited for all year. Popcorn, soda, and time with my grandfather made those games so special to me.

However, there was a major difference in those days compared to what we see today. I was just thinking about that over the weekend. If, by some miracle, Grandpa could return for an afternoon of football with his grandson, how in the world would I possibly explain the many things we take for granted today? Things that I know would blow his mind. How would I explain the following:

  1. A color television … with a screen 10 times larger than the one we used to watch at his house … hanging on my wall … with picture in picture … HDTV … stereo sound … instant replay and 375 channels (he had 8 channels)! Where would I begin?
  2. How would I explain that we had our choice of 34 college bowl games to choose from this year? Back then he and I had only four choices and of course we watched them all. We had only “The Fab Four” … Rose Bowl, Orange Bowl, Sugar Bowl, and Cotton Bowl. In those days, we felt it was hard to keep track of them all. Little did we know that the “Fab Four” would someday grow into the marathon of chaos we witness today!
  3. After explaining our many choices, how would I explain the crazy names? Rose, Orange, Sugar and Cotton are pretty simple compared to this year’s offering. What would Grandpa think when he saw these names?
    • GMAC Bowl
    • Brut Sun Bowl
    • Outback Bowl
    • Chick-fil-A Bowl
    • Eagle Bank Bowl
    • Capital One Bowl
    • Little Caesars Bowl
    • Tostitos Fiesta Bowl
    • MAACO Las Vegas Papajohns.com Bowl
    • Sheraton Hawaii Bowl
    • AutoZone Liberty Bowl
    • Meineke Car Care Bowl
    • Emerald Bowl (snack nuts)
    • Konica Minolta Gator Bowl
    • Valero Alamo Energy Bowl
    • Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl
    • Insight Bowl (technology solutions)
    • Champs Sports Bowl (Foot Locker)
    • Beef O’Brady’s St. Petersburg Bowl
    • Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl
    • Pacific Life Holiday Bowl (insurance)
    • San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl
    • Texas Bowl (Lone Star Sports and Entertainment)
    • Roady’s Humanitarian Bowl (Roady’s Truck Stops)
    • R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl (global transportation)
    • AdvoCareV100 Independence Bowl (energy drinks and nutritional supplements)

And they even butchered our “Fab Four” bowl games of yesteryear. They have become the Citi Rose Bowl, MetroPCS Orange Bowl, Allstate Sugar Bowl, and AT&T Cotton Bowl.

Yes, I’d have a difficult time trying to explain today’s world to Gramps! If you think the world of televised football would be a challenge, can you even imagine trying to explain:

  • 9-11
  • GPS
  • TSA
  • iPods
  • E-mail
  • Twitter
  • Google
  • Katrina
  • Facebook
  • Afghanistan
  • Health Care
  • Cell Phones
  • Satellite TV
  • Banking Bailout
  • Global Warming
  • Big Three Demise
  • A Black President
  • A Woman Running for President

Yes, things happen much faster than we sometimes realize. Maybe it takes an exercise like imagining your grandpa coming back for a visit to realize that fact! Of course, you can always reverse that process and imagine what it would be like if we came back 35 years from now. Can you even begin to imagine what might await us?

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Sharing Is Caring! — Make a Difference!

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Pause for just a moment and consider those in your life who belong to the younger generation. Consider children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, brothers, sisters, neighbors, those in your church and community. Have you ever taken just a few minutes to sit and chat with them? I’m not talking about asking them how to use your iPod or cell phone. I mean chatting about life in general. You might be pleasantly surprised at what can come out of a short encounter like that.

If you are one of the select few who have had such a chat, did you discuss failure? Most of us, thinking we’re doing the right thing, focus on success. By the way, that’s a good thing. We need to do more of that. However, we also need to balance that rhetoric by shedding a little reality on the subject of failure and how critical our approach to failure can be in achieving true success. Our younger generation needs to hear this, and they need to hear it from us.

Are the young people in your life worth 10 to 15 minutes of your time? Sit with them and share the following video. It runs for only one minute and sixteen seconds! It’s short and to the point. It provides critical examples of historic people who had to deal with failure. In less than a minute and a half, it shares some valuable insight about Abe Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, Thomas Edison, Walt Disney, Lucille Ball, the Beatles, and Michael Jordan. Watch it together and then share your own insight to these people, what they’ve accomplished, how they impacted our country, and how they dealt with and overcame failure and contributed to society.

This very short video will give you a foundation on which you can build a very powerful, interesting, and productive discussion. Your young charges need to hear that failing does not make them a failure … that to stumble is not to fall … that mistakes are building blocks. No one can deliver that message better than YOU.

P.S. To be safe, invest another few minutes on Google prior to your chat researching any of people above you may not be too familiar with. Enjoy and share your results with others. You’ll appreciate your investment and solidify these key relationships. These chats will be remembered and passed on for years to come.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Irony In Motown

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This is a short and simple story. Probably too simple. The moral of the story is obvious.

Who would have ever thought we’d see a strong example of LEADERSHIP coming out of Detroit of all places? I’m not disparaging the Motor City in any way. Motown has played a critical role in my life for decades. It’s just that one seldom links leadership to this particular city due to the demise of the auto industry and what we have long known as The Big Three.

Ironically, it’s one of the Big Three that is currently basking in the limelight, demonstrating what true leadership can accomplish.

Let me share a few facts that pretty much speak for themselves.

Washington provided in the vicinity of $82 billion dollars of OUR money to bail out General Motors and Chrysler last year.

Ford Motor Company refused assistance because it knew about the strings which would be attached to any government loan. It knew its hands would be tied.

The 21st Annual North American International Auto Show began this week in Detroit.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, thronged by reporters and cameras, led her entourage of a dozen members of Congress on a two-hour walk-through of the floor, squeezing onto show displays while top company officials talked up their businesses. They were there to check on OUR investment. Guess what they found?

Every year the Annual North American International Auto Show acknowledges the Best Car and the Best Truck of the Year. Seldom do both designations go to the same manufacturer. This year they did. Ford Motor Company took both honors. It took NO bailout money and yet out-performed and out-produced its two competitors that took billions from taxpayers. Think about it!

I must admit that I’ve never been fond of the Ford family and the reason is probably unfair. I’ve never approved of the way the family managed our Detroit Lions … the NFL football franchise they’ve owned far too long. It’s been a long-standing case of poor leadership.

However, Henry Ford’s great grandson William Clay (Bill) Ford has certainly gained my respect. Three years ago he stepped down as the leader of Ford Motor Company because he knew he wasn’t doing the job necessary to succeed in a very competitive, chaotic environment. That’s a tough choice to make when your name is on every building in the empire and every one of your cars in the country.

However, Ford recruited Alan Mulally, the President of Commercial Airplanes for Boeing. He chose Mulally for his reputation of being a “people person.” Ford was ridiculed by many at the time because the new President and CEO wasn’t a “car guy” and knew little of the auto industry. However, he had proven at Boeing that he knew how to lead people, and that’s what Ford was looking for. The rest of the story continues to provide a valuable lesson to anyone concerned about success.

Re-read this story with your staff and discuss the consequences for everyone involved. Then discuss how it relates to your own organization, its future and success.

I wonder if Nancy Pelosi and her Washington cronies, from both parties, know this story… probably not because the facts are on the table, not passed on under the table.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

I Just Don’t Have Time

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I was just sitting here at my computer talking on the phone to a friend when something interesting came on the television. It was a documentary piece on the wonders of today’s technology. It really made me stop and think. The facts were overwhelming in their simplicity and yet spoke to the power of the individual. Take a glance at just a few of these overwhelming facts.

  • Statistics show that there are more than 350 million active Facebook users on the Internet social site and that number continues to grow rapidly ever day!
  • The average Facebook user spends at least an hour a day on the site.
  • The average user uses the Like button 9 times a month and writes 25 comments each month.

There were many more interesting facts about Facebook, but let’s move on.

  • MySpace has more than 40 billion page views monthly!
  • MySpace is available in 15 different languages.
  • Twitter has enjoyed a 1,382% growth rate in the last year!

Now we could talk forever about these three social sites. Are these sites GOOD or BAD? The obvious answer is YES. You could easily compile a very long list of both pros and cons about each of these three sites. Maybe we’ll do just that in a future column.

Right now I want you to focus on just one aspect. Review the facts above. Put a few of those numbers into a calculator in hopes of determining how many hours a week are spent on those three sites. Now let’s be courageous and consider adding the hours spent on Google, Yahoo!, and eBay. We’ll overlook the dozens of other search engines available today. In addition, we won’t even consider the time we spend on cell phones or watching television.

Your answer will more than likely easily be in the billions of hours per week. My question is this: What were we all doing before we discovered these technologies? What did we stop doing in order to utilize these technologies? This isn’t a criticism in the least. It’s nothing more than an observation and question. The next time you find yourself complaining about not having enough time to do something … look back at these facts and figures. Then review your priorities and realize that you can find time to do anything if it’s something that has to be done or something that you really want to do. Just a pinch of reality here. Gotta go now. I’ve got something I need to google!

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.