Executive Insight
Tip of the Week
Issue #36, December 3, 2009
ISSN 1947-2889
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Hi !

Welcome to this week's issue of Executive Insight.

**Don't Put Your Client into a Box**

I was inspired with the topic for today's column while at my
Thanksgiving dinner table with friends. One of my guests, Donna,
brought a lovely gift of chocolates from Godiva. And that's where
our story begins.

Donna had wandered into Godiva to make the purchase and asked to
create her own assortment of candy instead of buying a prepackaged
box. The salesperson asked if she wanted 8 or 16 pieces, and Donna
asked if she could just purchase by the pound. Yes, she could. 

When she picked the 9th piece of candy, however, the salesperson
said, "Oh, I guess you want 16 pieces." No, she wanted to select
her own assortment by the pound. This conversation went back and
forth for awhile. Donna ended up buying something between 8 and 16
pieces that were put into an 8-piece box, much to the dismay of the
salesperson.

The story is comical and pathetic at the same time. To give the
salesperson the benefit of the doubt, it seems that Donna was the
object of some mysterious and important corporate policy that
states that a customer can only buy in multiples of 8. 

It was especially interesting to me since Godiva, after all, is
considered a luxury retailer, yet the "rules" involved with this
purchase seemed more like buying something at McDonald's.

The Oxford English Dictionary defines customize as "to make to
order or to measure; to model or alter according to individual
requirements." If you claim that you customize, don't do what
Godiva did to Donna, which was put her into a box.

When you do customize, do so with a passion for understanding the
wants and needs of your clients and being super-responsive to their
requests. If you don't customize, it's OK. But we should know that
when we walk in.

Have a great week!

Lisa

© 2009 Lisa M. Aldisert

Lisa Aldisert is the president of Pharos Alliance, Inc., a
management consulting firm that works with organizations in the
areas of strategy, business development, and
organizational/leadership development. Give us a call at
212-332-3241 to see how we can help you create strategies that make
sense for your organization, and result in increased revenue and
profitability.  

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**Leadership and the Bottom Line**

This is a good time of the year to remember that it's best to under
promise and over-deliver. It's a reminder for effective management.

**Personal Power**

Pace yourself in the weeks ahead. Decide what you want to do and
what you want to avoid. The message? You take control of the
holidays rather than the holidays running your life.

**Trend Watch**

Read how a fairy tale was started by Neil Gaiman on BBC Audiobooks
America's twitter feed, had 124 contributing Twitterers give it
shape, and was released as an audio-book:
http://bit.ly/5FJz9Z

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