Great: Getting Recognition for Being a Good Customer

Capers is a local home furnishings and accessories shop; they are launching a new gift card program. What is REMARKABLE is that instead of sending me gimmicky marketing blah blah touting their new program, overburdening my mailbox and likely getting no attention or reaction, they use it as an opportunity to thank me and engage me. The thoughtful hand written note and $20 gift card completely surprised me and made me feel like a valued customer.

The extra care to recognize that I have many choices and that I choose to support them and shop with them (lucky for me they have GREAT stuff) makes the context genuine. Beyond my renewed loyalty and continued patronage, it has inspired me to write about it on my blog and link to other bloggers who I think might be interested - which I hope will result in additional business and recognition for them.

What a great way for them to build loyalty! Likely much less expensive and much more effective than traditional ads or mailers.

Good: Technology and the Future

Wow! How would this change the way you work? How about computing at home?



I would like to think I would finally get my photo albums organized and distributed. I would also update my blog more and go deeper with social media. I think it would encourage more of my friends to participate as well. It would definitely make work more fun! Our website would be amazing. I can imagine using this technology in place of our current whiteboards - drawing, pulling videos and photos, integrating everything together and syncing to a laptop for a client presentation...I wonder how far away this really is from mainstream?

If your imagination isn't running wild yet, click here for a more "commercial" video put out by the Microsoft Surface team.

Great: Conversation on Compassion

Compassion - Everyone has it, but it's easy to get caught up in day-to-day and forget how important it is to exercise compassion in every action we take. When compassion is exercised it tends to spread and grow and a ripple is set in motion - it's so cool. Everything improves - attitudes, productivity, relationships, confidence, etc.

How about compassion in the workplace? That was the discussion for the Seeds of Compassion luncheon and panel discussion I attended on Monday. The Dalai Lama was the honored guest and it was amazing how simple he made it all seem - but he was right! Do good in business, and business will grow. There were other very amazing speakers as well - executives from Starbucks, Costco, and a professor from Bentley College - they all shared the same philosophy (with concrete examples) that said, if the company does right by it's people, it's customers, it's community - the company will be great often outrivaling it's competition (more on competition and compassion later).

It's so true. When I think about examples of companies I interact with in my own life - the ones that try to improve by cutting costs, raising prices without added benefits, etc suffer and eventually lose my business. The ones that have great employees who love their jobs and actually care, the ones that respect their relationship with me and do not abuse it by overburdening my mailbox with junk or gouging my checkbook every chance they get...those are companies that do well, have done well and will continue to do well. If everyone would just learn that corporate does not need to be anti-compassion the world would really be a better place!