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Articles to Make Your Heart HappyThe articles appearing on this page have appeared in other publications or websites. Most of these articles relate to the Binkle or The Joyful Banker. Each of them takes another step toward making the binkle a force in everyday life—for ever-more people. Read ThesePart 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Money Really is a Laughing Matter Linn Haugestad Edvardsen Published in Tanning Trends Volume 19, Issue 8, June 2004 My husband I recently had dinner at a local restaurant. We decided to try in on a whim and didn’t find the view, food, or décor exception. Will we go back? Absolutely. As we were dining, something just short of magical happened. The servers glided around the place as if they were in their natural habitat. They took orders, served coffee and suggested desert like Olympic swimmers take laps in a pool. There was a hint of classical music in the background, a wonderful smoky smell, and an energy that made us feel good. To put it simply: we had an experience. As we walked out the waitress ran after us, thanked us for our patronage and invited us back in the same kind of way someone invites you back into their home. When asked a few days later if I would recommend the restaurant I said, yes, but couldn’t quite explain what, exactly, I liked so much. “It’s hard to explain,” I said. “You should go and experience it for yourself.” This experience, says author Lynella Grant is a perfect example of the power of Binkles. Binkle what? “The Binkle is the energy that’s creates when people connect. It’s when there is a person-to-person connection,” says Grant, who created the word and is passionate about the concept. “There are pockets in everyday life where we get our Binkles and everyone defines, for themselves, what those are. But the energy is the same and it has never been noticed as its own thing. People think it’s ’from the thrill, from this or from the that.’ No, it isn’t. It’s the energy created.” The term can be used as a noun, adjective, whatever; the meaning is still the same. Grant believes that the Binkle is a driving force of human behavior. We want more of them. Binkles, says Grant, are the antidote to stress. And, when it comes to customer service and why people go to one place as opposed to another, it is that they have a need to relax. If a customer knows Susan, who always gives them a free lotion sample when therevs a new product out or a cup of green teal waiting if the salon is slow, will be there that’s where they’ll go. Beyond a tan, the salon is a place to get and give Binkles. Think about it. What is it about all of those greasy spoons out there that keeps them in business? Come on now, it’s not the food. “Why are these places surviving when the product is either inferior or the same as others? There’s something going on in these places that makes people feel the need to come in.” People feel good when the go there. It’s this “experience” that you should strive to create in your salon. In the big Binkle picture, employees play the most important role. The one-to-one connection played out with every transaction will either support or tear down a customer’s experience. “You’re dealing with an industry that’s completely optional. One of the only ways to make it unique is to make it an experience. Everything from how appointments are made to how one makes the customer feel when they walk out the door.” There are little things you can do like get to know your customers and their needs, greet everyone by their first name, smile more, thank patrons as they walk out and so on. And there are more robust you can try to add more value to the customer. If you notice customers rushing in on Sunday afternoons, perhaps you could suggest to your boss to keep the salon open an extra hour. If a patron tans once a week on her lunch hour, ask if you can order lunch for her, so she will have time to eat before returning to work. Binkles are at the gut level. You don’t really know what’s creating the energy but it’s positive and make everything you do more enjoyable. In your position, as a salesperson, you have a unique opportunity to help someone enjoy their experience. Don’t blow it. And, at the end of the day, you’ll make mores sales and probably feel pretty good yourself. Wow, the power of the Binkle. It was so obvious. Lin Haugestad Edvardsen As published in Tanning Trends Magazine June, 2004. Reprinted with permission. The Joyful Banker - A Parody of all things Financial Off the Page Press (719) 395-9450 fax (719) 395-9453 P.O. Box 4880, Buena Vista, Colorado 81211 USA http://www.joyfulbanker.com editor@joyfulbanker.com |
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