Today the barista asked me for a name on my coffee order.
I didn’t answer.
Instead, I just waited until she looked up from her computer, actually made eye contact with me and noticed my nametag.
“Oh, duh – Scott. Your name’s right there. Sorry.”
This happens to me all the time.
Sometimes people feel embarrassed.
Sometimes people say thanks.
Sometimes people just laugh.
But I always smile. And I never bust chops about it.I just wish people would pay more attention to their customers.
I just wish employees would notice opportunities to take a moment and make a memory.
What if, upon seeing my nametag, she thanked me for making her job easier?
What if, upon seeing my nametag, she used my name and said she was psychic?
What if, upon seeing my nametag, she offered a friendly joke that made my day?
That would be worth repeating. That would be worth telling a friend about. That would be worth remembering next time I walked in the door.
Instead of reaching for another robotic, ready-made script about how important someone’s call is, say something that invites people to store the memory in the heart.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
Will you take a moment to make a memory?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
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* * * * Scott Ginsberg That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor [email protected]
But nothing seemed to work. No matter how hard I tried, I still felt like an outsider.
Eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore. I was tired of feeling like part of the wallpaper. I was tired of being held hostage by my outsiderness.So I stuck on a nametag and said, “Screw it. Now I belong everywhere.”
And that changed everything. The posture with which I approached the world was never the same again.
My name is Scott. I am a global citizen.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
Where do you belong?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
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* * * * Scott Ginsberg That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor [email protected]
Wearing a nametag didn’t make me into somebody new.
What it did was surface the kind person I already was. What it did was accelerate my growth into the person I was born to become.
And if I do a little research, it makes a lot of sense:
I’ve been creative, quirky and exceptional my whole life. The nametag just gave me an outlet.
I’ve been a performer, an artist and a writer my whole life. The nametag just gave me a canvas.
I’ve been a radical, a heretic and a leader my whole life. The nametag just gave me a platform.
It’s weird. The older you get, the younger you feel. The older you get, the more you remind yourself of the person you’ve always been.
But I do think people change – when they want to. When they decide to. And when the pain of staying the same is greater than the cost to change.Still, we are all more or less the same as we were. I think if each of us traced our identities back to the beginning, we’d find shocking similarities between the people we started as and the people we became.
Michelangelo used to say that the sculpture was already inside the stone.
Maybe that’s all life is: A chance to chip away.
It’s not a nametag – it’s a chisel.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
What’s yours?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
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* * * * Scott Ginsberg That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor [email protected]
As if my dream had an expiration date. As if one day I was going to snap out of my delusions, close the door on my cute little experiment and rejoin the rest of the world.
But I just kept saying forever.
Me and my nametag just kept showing up.
All day. Every day.
And after about five years, the questions stopped. People knew I was serious. People knew I was in it for the long haul. And they no longer doubted my dedication.
Dennis Miller used to say a good rule of thumb is, if you’ve made it to thirty-five and your job still requires you to wear a nametag, you’ve made a serious vocational error.
Funny what forever can change.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
How committed are you?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
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* * * * Scott Ginsberg That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor [email protected]
Years ago somebody asked me if I was wearing a nametag to build social capital.
Social what?
So I did some research.
As defined by Robert Putnam’s groundbreaking book, social capital is our reserve of personal bonds and fellowship. Like a bank account, every interaction that builds trust and reciprocity strengthens our sense of community and instills a feeling of belonging.
What’s interesting is how many different areas of daily life social capital affects – everything from productivity to depression to suicide to juvenile delinquency to test scores to government response time to divorce rate.The problem is, our reserve is eroding. Nobody engages anymore. People are building bigger fences and smaller porches. And we’re becoming more disconnected from each other than ever before.
Are nametags the answer? Probably not.
But each of us needs to be reminded that our species is better together. Each of us needs to remember that navigating life is much easier when you have a solid crew. Each of us needs to be reminded that life is a lot richer when you have people to share it with.
We don’t need a call to arms – we need a call to connect.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
How do you build social capital?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
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* * * * Scott Ginsberg That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor [email protected]
Love isn’t something you feel – it’s something you decide.
THE QUESTION IS: Has your organization made that decision yet?
If you haven’t, people will find out.
If you haven’t, people will find someone else.
From my column on American Express Open Forum, we’re going to explore a few more ideas about how to out heart the competition:1. Contact trumps content. Loveless companies are notorious for only delivering select information. And that makes people feel out of control. For example, I recently called a local property management company to discuss leasing options. When I got their voicemail, here’s what the recording said:
“Thanks for calling, but everything you need can be found on our website.”
And I thought to myself, “Well, I need to talk to a human being right now. Got any of those on your website?” Click. Frustrated, I sought out one of their competitors. And to my delight, when I called their number, not only did a human being answer on the second ring; she even googled my name as we talked to learn more about my business. Which company would you pick?
That’s the amazing thing: Sometimes loving people is as simple as showing up and giving voice to their needs. Are you offering access to information about your company or access to individuals who work there?
2. Ask your customers early. Netflix recently increased their streaming service by sixty percent – without making any changes in the subscription model. According to an interview in The New York Times, the purpose behind the move was to make streaming films the core of its business – not physically mailed movies. Sadly, this price increase spurred tens of thousands of customer complaints, thousands of cancellations and hundreds of negative media stories.
After reading several dozen comments on the company blog, here’s what I learned from their (now former) subscribers: If Netflix loved their customers, they would have increased the quality of the streaming movie selection with the increase of the price. Or, they would have offered bundled discounts for veteran members. Also, wouldn’t have made the pricing change when the economy was the worse since the Great Depression.
And lastly, they would have realized they made a horrible pricing mistake, listened to their customers, apologized, and then returned to their original pricing model. By loving customers, you have automatically asked for their opinion on everything. Have you?
3. Make normal a possibility. Secrecy is a lonely experience. People don’t want to feel terminally unique – they want to feel like they’re not alone. That’s why it’s so important to respond to their experience in a calm, even way. You have to meet them where they are. You have to be willing to go as deep – or as shallow – as they want to go. And you have to help them merge their checkered past into something that smacks of normality.
My physician is an artist when it comes to this. He never fails to remind his patients that they’re not the only ones having an experience. I remember the first time I came in with stomach problems. “Tell me about your typical day,” he asked. So I did. And when I finished, he smiled and said, “Well, you certainly have a unique career path for someone your age. But your symptoms couldn’t be more normal. Happens every day at this clinic. In fact, if you didn’t have stomach problems, then I’d really be concerned.”
That was the love I needed to hear. Interestingly, I’ve only had to see him once in the past three years. Behold, the healing power of normality. When was the last time one of your people trusted you with a secret?
4. Intimacy can’t be forced – but it can be accelerated. I don’t have to warm up to people. I don’t have to get to know someone before we connect. And I don’t have to wait until we’ve hung out six times before I start opening up. I just jump right in. I reveal myself quickly, openly, honestly and respectfully. And most of the time, others reciprocate.
Sure, not everybody is used to that level of openness. But most people appreciate the willingness to cut the formalities and start connecting for real. As my dad likes to remind me, “When you treat people like family, it’s hard to say no.”
That’s the key to exhibiting loving intimacy: It’s not about pretending you’re everyone’s best friend. It’s about finding the common point of interest that makes people feel like you’ve been friends for years. Do you treat customer intimacy as a feeling or a business model?
REMEMBER: It’s not a secret that love is what everybody secretly wants.
Love looks good on everybody.
It’s the style that never goes out of style.
Make the decision.
Out heart the competition.
* * * * Scott Ginsberg That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor [email protected]
Customers know more, see more, remember more and repeat more – than ever before.
Everything matters.
Everybody’s watching.
Everything’s a performance.
Privacy is so last century.
And when you lack consistency, when your onstage performance doesn’t align with your backstage reality, people see through you like bottle of water.
Which doesn’t mean you have to be perfect. You are human, after all.
BUT THE REALITY IS: Consistency is far better than rare moments of greatness.
From my column on American Express Open Forum, here’s what it costs when you don’t have it:1. Inconsistency implies unreliability. When I became president of my local association, I made a bad decision selecting a second in command. Greg had developed a reputation for undependability. And his inconsistent behavior made the board look stupid on several occasions.
But I refused to believe that’s who he really was. So I gave him the benefit of the doubt. Three times. But he continued to verify my suspicions. Eventually, enough was enough. I fired him from the board. Which was especially painful considering it was a volunteer position.
People shouldn’t have to use their flake filter on you. Ground your consistency in commitment or be left behind. When people show you who they are, will you believe them?
2. Inconsistency costs trust. Many of my clients are bloggers. They’re big thinkers, great writers and smart businesspeople. The problem is, not all of them post daily. And when I bust their chops, they all use the same excuses: I don’t have the time. I can’t think of anything to write about. Nobody cares what I have to say. My industry has too much regulation. I don’t know what I’m doing.
Doesn’t matter. Credibility isn’t an entitlement – it’s a dividend. And you have to reapply for it every single day. Otherwise there’s no reason for people to believe in you. Because they’re certainly not going to waste their time playing the guessing game with your brand. They’ll simply find someone else and move on. How are you building a consistent timeline of credibility?
3. Inconsistency arouses suspicion. John Kerry may have been a war hero, but he was also a waffler. During his presidential campaign, every statement he made seemed to contradict his original position. Issues he claimed to support, he voted against ten years prior. From welfare reform to gay marriage to social security, nobody knew where he stood. No wonder he got knocked off the platform.
People shouldn’t have to wonder about your brand. If you’re truly living your values, you’ll leave no doubt in their minds who you are, what you believe why you matter. If you’re truly consistent, you’ll sustain the spirit of your brand through every touchpoint. Is the message you’re preaching the dominant reality of your life?
4. Inconsistency creates hesitation. As an author and publisher, the first lesson I learned about selling books was: The longer they take, they less they buy. If people flip through my book for more than five minutes, they are never going take it home. Complexity generates contemplation, and contemplation kills sales.
And it’s not their fault: People are tired, busy, lazy and overloaded. They don’t want to think. They don’t want to make decisions. They just want the shortcut. And that’s exactly what brands are: Shortcuts. Expectations. Predictable moments of youness. Your job is to confirm people’s hopes about the value you deliver and the values you stand for.
Otherwise there’s always an asterisk. There’s always something people can’t quite put their finger on when they’re around you. And that’s precisely why they hesitate to work with and talk positively about you. Are you taking up too much space?
5. Inconsistency causes anxiety. There’s this guy named Dalton. We’ve shared the stage a few times over the years. Good speaker. And what’s fascinating is that the first time I watched him, I later heard someone in the bathroom comment, “You know, I’ve always had a hard time taking Dalton seriously – because of his mullet.”
That’s the thing about inconsistency: People won’t listen to you if they’re too busy questioning you. The human brain has a motivational drive to reduce cognitive dissonance whenever possible. That’s why inconsistency is so dangerous: It causes frustration, which is a precursor to psychological stress. And when word and deed don’t line up, people’s heads hurt. What is affecting your ability to be taken seriously?
REMEMBER: Do something once, and that’s a treat. Do something twice, and that’s a trend. But do something every single day for a decade, and that’s a triumph.
In a world where customers know, see, remember and repeat more than ever before, everything matters.
Consistency is cheaper than apology.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
What is inconsistency costing you?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
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* * * * Scott Ginsberg That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor [email protected]
At a recent White House tribute concert, Smokey Robinson shared the following insight:
“There are no new words. There are no new chords. And there are no new ideas. In my music, I just try to say, ‘I love you,’ as differently as I can.”
How does your brand say I love you?
And are you asking your customers to sing that song with you?
THAT’S THE HUMAN REALITY: Service, schmervice – people want to be in love.
You don’t need a focus group to figure that out.
And if that’s too touchy feely for you, too bad.
Companies who see love as a limited resource, as an endangered species, are never going to make it. But if you learn how to bring your heart to their ears, you’ll be around for a long time.
Today we’re going to focus on how your brand can love louder:1. Create an act of love in a moment of friction. The other day I was at a stoplight. Right before it turned green, an old man in a walker dropped his folder. Papers went flying all over the intersection.
Two people hopped out of their cars, picked everything up and walked the guy to the curb. Not a single car moved – even when the light was green.
That was act of love. And I wonder how many micromoments throughout the day your organization could create more of those. Take Southwest Airlines, for example. Most companies use employees as objects to leverage – they treat employees as people to love. And their customers have reached the point where it’s hard not to say I love you.
Matter of fact, Southwest actually has love as their stock symbol. And isn’t it interesting that they’ve been the only profitable airline since the early seventies. Looks like loving louder works. If your employees could give your company a hug, would they run across a field with open arms?
2. Be an expert in memory creation. Love earns you the right to a continued relationship. Love earns you the right to have customers tell your story. And love earns you the right to whisper to those customers on a regular basis. Your challenge is to give regular and unsolicited tokens of love. And I’m not going to bore you with a bunch of examples – that’s the easy.
What matters is that your love implies three things: First, that you’re willing to forego your own convenience. Second, that you’re willing to invest your own time. And third, that you’re willing risk your own security to promote someone else’s satisfaction and development. Do that, and love will not be far behind. Do that, and profit will not be far behind either. How are you rehearsing loving behavior daily?
3. Escort customers. Every day our world becomes less humane in our treatment of each other. In fact, it’s almost scary how many organizations suffer from a severely loveless mentality. Instead of treating people like people, companies treat customer like objects, integers, trophies, categories and commodities.
Retail is the worst. Every time you buy something, you end up standing at the counter thinking: I don’t need a bag. I don’t need a receipt. I don’t need to fill out an online survey for the chance to win a thousand dollars. And I don’t need to sign up for your crappy rewards program so you can spam my inbox with coupons that don’t matter. Just hand me the latte and nobody gets hurt.
If you want to love louder, meet the now need. Instead of treating people’s comments as inconvenient interruptions to the pre-scripted phrases you were forced to memorize in your employee empathy class, trying speaking human. It’s the only language that matters, and the only language guaranteed to be understood by all. Are you famous for the widgets you sell or for the way you love?
4. Be a better mirror. “Mirror, mirror, on the wall – who’s the fairest of them all?” Your customers, that’s who. If you want people to fall in love with you, help them fall in love with themselves first. Give them a front row seat to their own brilliance – and they’ll stick around forever.
The problem is, most people can’t see how smart they really are. They’re just too close themselves. And maybe what they need is a better mirror. If you want to love louder, you need to be that mirror. You need to reflect people’s realities in an affirming, respectful manner. Maybe by taking notes on their ideas right in front of them to make them feel heard, or by linking to their website from your own to make them feel seen.
It’s all about memorializing their impact on your world, then telling everyone about it. That’s the thing about recognition: Isn’t just an interactional gift – it’s an emotional release. If you want to create a world of delight, if you want to establish a memory that sticks in customer’s minds forever, be the mirror they keep coming back to. How are you helping people love themselves more when doing business with you?
REMEMBER: Giving away love changes the kind of person you are as well as the kind of brand you represent.
It’s time turn up the volume of your heart.
It’s time to make your brand worth singing about.
Because it’s not who loves you – it’s whose life is better because you love them.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
Are you loving people who do not deserve it?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For a list called, “7 Ways to Out Experience the Competition,” send an email to me, and you win the list for free!
* * * * Scott Ginsberg That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Entrepreneur, Mentor [email protected]
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Panhandlers usually respond positively to my nametag.
Which makes total sense: It’s an easy opening. It’s a chance to engage. And it’s an instant connection that might increase the chance of a donation.
But for the most part, I choose not to give them money. And I have my reasons.
For example, I once met a homeless guy outside of Voodoo Doughnuts. He asked if I could spare some change for food, so I offered him three boxes of donuts instead. He paused for a moment, looked at my nametag and said:
“Sorry Scott, but I don’t eat sweets.” Huh. I guess beggars can be choosers.
So I rarely give.
But I never ignore them, either. I can’t. When somebody says your name, it’s hard to look the other way. No matter how poor they are.
Instead, I smile, acknowledge their presence, wave hello and keep moving.
That’s enough for me to not feel like an asshole.
The point is, if you see people bleeding – you can’t pretend they aren’t really hurting.
You don’t have to rescue them. You don’t have to give them your life savings. And you don’t have to wash their feet.
But don’t act like they’re not there.
If you don’t give money, at least give acknowledgment.
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
How many people did you go out of your way to ignore last week?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
For the list called, “134 Questions Every Salesperson Should Ask,” send an email to me, and you win the list for free!
* * * * Scott Ginsberg That Guy with the Nametag
Author, Speaker, Publisher, Artist, Mentor [email protected]
Today the barista asked me for a name on my coffee order. 
Never the same speech twice.
When I was a kid, I struggled to find a spot.
Wearing a nametag didn’t make me into somebody new.
“How long do you plan on doing this?”
When you look into a trashcan, you have a choice.
Years ago somebody asked me if I was wearing a nametag to build social capital.
Love isn’t something you feel – it’s something you decide.
It’s hard to be inconsistent and win.
Panhandlers usually respond positively to my nametag.