Last night, I was at our local "Retail Resort" (yes, they actually call it such; rustic design, lots of fake evergreens, and the security guards are dressed as park rangers!). This mall is in the second-highest-income zip code in Colorado, which abutts the highest-income zip code.  The stores tend to the swanky, high-end brands; there's even a Tesla auto showroom.  

There is also an Apple Store on the main level, and a Microsoft Store on the floor above.  I'm sure I must have broken a zillion mall rules, but my cell video cam "accidentally" shot short video of both stores.  I'm cutting a comparison together to post here.  As a former Microsoft employee, their store just made me sad.  It's so weak, so unfocused, and such a copycat attempt to cash in on Apple's deft retail touch.  



Stay tuned...

Yaffa's Savory:  I met this woman at a Christmas crafts fair, and was blown away by both her products and her salesmanship.  Yaffa's a Mediterranean Maestro -- her sauces and spices are beyond yummy.  But what made her stand out the most was her sunny, upbeat way of interacting with the crowd.  She "sold" us -- and we were darn happy about it.  

It amazes me how some people think negatively of "sales".  There's an old adage that marketing and sales don't get along.  I have always felt that marketing is the front end of sales, and at the same time marketing exists to SERVE the sales staff by generating leads and awareness -- and desire and curiosity. Yaffa told me it's easy for her to sell because she believes passionately in her products.That makes sense to me.  You always want your frontline folks -- whoever will be in contact with customers -- to believe totally in what you're selling.  Sure, many companies hire people who don't feel that way (ever had to call your local cable company about an issue????), but overall if you have something unique to sell, you want the people doing the selling to BELIEVE.  (And it never hurts to have the same commitment from backoffice staff.)

I attended a groundbreaking ceremony recently. It offered the requisite boring contents -- too many executives droning (Yes!  DRONING -- monotone put-you-to-sleep tone).  Then out trooped the line of executives  (including -- always -- one woman who decides today is a great day to wear stiletto high heels that sink into the mud), bearing shiny new silver shovels and fake plastic hardhats with the company logo, and it's SAY CHEESE time.  Why does this happen?  I mean, if you can manage to get any press attention focused on your groundbreaking, it's such a great opportunity to do something totally memorable and different -- and tied to your brand.  Instead, these frequently become merely vanity opps for the brass.  

Two groundbreaking stories I was told by a local CEO that I just LOVED were these:  for a big new movie theater chain, they "broke ground" into a mountain of... popcorn.  OK, I get it -- very photogenic, too.  But my favorite was for a new animal shelter:  the groundbreaking was done by the dogs!  The staff buried yummy dog treats just a couple inches under the loose soil -- and the dogs very happily did all the work,  My CEO friend told me that was the only groundbreaking he'd ever attended where people truly had fun.  

If you have a groundbreaking opportunity coming up soon, can you think hard about ways to be fresh, innovative, and creative?  

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