I seem to be a magnet for “teaching moments” when it comes to customer service lately. This time, a terrific server at a tiny little wine bar trumped a multi-million dollar airline when it came to doing things right.
As someone who practically lives on airplanes, I spend an inordinate amount of time in Delta Skyclubs—they’ve become my regional offices, once the laptop and cell phone are fired up. One of the perks to being a member is that you can “guest” someone in with you, which until now, I hadn’t had the opportunity to do.
And still haven’t, thanks to the staff at the Skyclub in Terminal E, Atlanta Hartsfield (the one nearest the central concourse area, not the second one further back).
The scenario: [click here to continue…]
I’ll be the first to admit frustration with Delta since they took over the Northwest Airlines WorldPerks program, post-merger. Loss of available flights, loss of direct flights, and loss of upgrades have all taken a real toll on my attitude where the “new” airline is concerned.
Imagine my surprise when receiving a letter from the airline apologizing for a weather delay…then giving me SkyMiles points for it. [click here to continue…]
You asked, you received. Welcome to the new, greatly improved AmericasMart website, folks!
It’s a direct reflection of the things you’ve asked for, been frustrated by, and didn’t know you needed…yet. The best part, in my opinion, is the significant upgrade in the site’s search function. Unlike before, you can now locate items by name, by product type, and by market. Sure, the reliability rests on how showrooms submit their info (ex: product name versus manufacturer’s corporate name), but the Mart is doing its part by ponying up the platform to make info flow smoothly.
Check it out. Troll around. Pretty sure you’ll be smilin’ in the end.
Thanks, AmericasMart, for listening. You’ve done us all proud.
”So…what do you think about the show?” was the question most frequently asked by exhibitors as I strolled the aisles of Atlanta Gift the past several days. In a nutshell? I thought it was a good show, living up to the high expectations folks have for AmericasMart. Here’s what I saw: [click here to continue…]
For those of you here in Atlanta, don’t forget tomorrow’s seminar about The 3/50 Project (Building 1, 14th floor, seminar room 14-D-9). Would love to see you there!
If there was any question the Project’s message is spreading, the past 24 hours have proven otherwise. I’ve been met with excitement in every showroom, booth, and hallway over what we’re doing, and how amazing it’s been for brick and mortars. [click here to continue…]
Well, here we go…off to the Big Show, the summer gift show at AmericasMart in Atlanta. Admittedly, I’m a bit curious about the next few days and how they’ll play out. In January, we were all looking each other in the eye for the first time since the market nose dived into oblivion. It only took 24 hours for the collective :::sigh::: to be heard across the three block campus as everyone recognized they were in this thing together.
Now, six months later-—to the day-—everyone’s had time to adjust to doing business differently. [click here to continue…]
Six days ago, several thousand buyers, reps, and vendors arrived in Atlanta with fear in their eyes. Would the first show of the 2009 season fall flat? Would anyone show up? Would money be spent?
In a word: Yes, yes, and yes. Atlanta Gift was a success. [click here to continue…]
As a member of the AmericasMart Advisory Board, one of my responsibilities is to attend three yearly meetings to examine the state of the industry, how the Mart factors into the picture, and to determine what can be done to improve the experience and usefulness of the Mart for buyers, venodrs, and reps. Today, we all entered the room with cautious optimism. [click here to continue…]
