Not to belabor the whole “make or break telephone moments” conversation but today  Drew McLellan left a tweet that he’d called a company and got a human.  He said: Just called a company — was surprised to hear a human answer the phone. That’s how rare it is today. Wayne Hurlbert responded back saying: Being rare also [...]

This wasn’t a test.  I really wanted to find a colleague from my past, but the experience was just too good to pass up sharing. I found someone that I used to work with via LinkedIn and according to their profile they work at AM Trust.  Of course LinkedIn doesn’t provide the phone number and so [...]

When we think of customer service, we generally think about face-to-face conversations, yet often our first contact with the potential customer is over the phone. When I was first promoted to Regional Manager over the Greater Detroit Pearle Vision stores (back in the late 80s) I spent the first few months traveling the stores and [...]

Before I even start my story, you know it will be wildly wonderful.  Why?  Because it happened at Trader Joe’s. Can you imagine having your name so closely associated with great customer service that all people have to hear is your name and know right away that it will be great?  Like Jell-o is synonymous [...]

When I first started working at Pearle Vision as a store manager I attended a variety of sales training sessions.  In those days (the dark ages) we didn’t have computers and when we sold a pair of glasses the details were written on a multi-part order form.  One form per pair of glasses.  This was [...]

The stars were on parade at the Emmy’s last night – each having their Make or Break Moment live on the red carpet as paparazzi snapped and interviewers grabbed the most famous of the famous for a 30 second sound bite.  Make or break moments can happen even before you open your mouth.  So often [...]

I just met my old boss at Panera for a cup of coffee and a chance to get caught up.  I wanted to hear about his company, a retail chain continuing to thrive even in these challenging times and I also wanted to share the excitement about my Make or Break Moments initiative. It was [...]

I love going to my local drug store.  The employees are more than just clerks, they have become friends.  We know each other by name, ask after our kids and even celebrated birthdays together.  When I got divorced last year they helped gather boxes for my move and always asked how the kids and I [...]

I have been divorced for about 18 months and have been faced with home improvement projects I wouldn’t normally tackle.  This past weekend one such project came up which led me to a Make or Break Moment. The door handle of the front storm door came off in my hand sending its corresponding partner skittering [...]

Have you had this experience… You are talking with someone (customer, parent, spouse, boss, vendor) and you just know that the next words out of your mouth are either going to make the relationship or break it for all time. What do you do? It may be a new customer walking in the door or [...]