Yellow Dog Consulting

Sales & Marketing Consulting for solo-preneurs.

June Pop Culture Round Up

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June 2017 seems to have been the culmination of amazing peak TV viewing. My DVR seems pretty happy that HBO is in a holiday mode till Game of Thrones returns next month because good GRIEF there was some amazing TV this month! And, thanks to sunshine and warmer weather (and joining Book of the Month) I finally read a book! Netflix seems to be exploding with new shows just in time for the summer, let’s get caught up…

Reading

Why yes, I read a book this month! A friend recommended I check out Book of the Month and since they have a bunch of books that have been on my list I decided to try it out. The first book I picked was Dennis Lehane’s Since We Fell. I LOVED IT. I’ve never read Lehane before, although I really enjoyed some of his movies (Mystic River, Gone Baby Gone) so my hopes were high. And it was a fantastic twisty-turny mystery, exactly what I needed this month! I’ll definitely read more books by Lehane and I’m excited to jump into my June pick which was the new David Sedaris book.

It was too hot to go outside this weekend, but too nice not to read. Once I finished my book I caught up on some comics. I’m now up to date on The Walking Dead and Hawkeye. Hawkeye is a LOT of fun and a fantastic female protagonist. I’m way behind on Outcast and I have the Princess Leia series from last year to read still.

Listening

The Daily is turning into a daily must listen for me. It’s an easy way to get a behind the scenes look at major news. Last week over two days (6/22 & 6/23) they talked about the opioid epidemic in the US. I knew we had one but it hasn’t personally touched me or my family so I wasn’t that familiar with it. I was shocked by what I learned. If you’ve been hearing about it and want to learn more, this is a great place to start.

I’ve needed more non-political podcasts lately so I’ve been especially grateful for The Watch this month. I’m also really enjoying some recent live interviews from Fresh Air where Terry Gross (the most soothing female voice in all the land…) interviewed Seth Meyers and Joe Biden (separate, but together would be mind blowing!)

Watching

On Father’s Day my dad was visiting so we went to do what any father and daughter would do – we saw Wonder Woman. And it was PERFECT. I can’t wait to see it again and I loved everything about it! Holy crap this is exactly the super hero movie I’ve wanted and it was so well executed, I can’t say enough great things about it! GO. NOW. Stop what you’re doing and go.

The series finale of The Leftovers was wonderful and spectacular. I really really loved this show. I know the first season was super dark, but you were rewarded for it in seasons 2 and 3. I was concerned they couldn’t answer all the questions and that we might feel disappointed, but no. Damon Lindelof nailed it.

The season finale of The Americans was good, I am super curious how the final season will go next year. There was no big “aha” like previous seasons, but if only half the questions get answered by the show’s end they have a season’s worth of work.

I loved the book version of The Handmaids Tale and the show did a good job, but I am curious what they’ll do with multiple seasons still. I’ll come back for next season and I really hope they don’t screw it up!

Season 5 of Orange is the New Black was a very easy binge a few weeks ago. The series taking place over 3 days of a prison riot was a creative way to slow down the timeline. I didn’t like any of the flashbacks and don’t think they’re needed, but I still enjoyed the season and I’m starting to wonder how many more seasons this show will last.

I also tried two episodes of GLOW on Netflix, and I can NOT for the life of me get into it. What am I missing? It should check all the boxes and everyone raves about it, but it is not my jam sadly.

Downward Dog sadly ended this week, and stupid ABC cancelled the show on top of it. This show is so perfect and hilarious and has the added benefit that Norm usually gets extra snuggles and treats during the show because of it. If you haven’t watched it, even if you aren’t a dog person, trust me. It’s awesome.

I have the entire last season of Fargo on my DVR and Orphan Black started up again a few weeks ago. I decided last season that I would binge Orphan Black so will start when there’s just a week or two left in the series. There’s way too many plot lines and too much science to follow on a weekly basis!

What have you been reading, watching and listening to so far this summer?

Be Friendly to Customer Service

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The other day I posted this to my Instagram:

PRO TIP: be friendly to customer service folks. A few weeks ago I had a weird issue pop up in @mailchimp so I chatted with a friendly customer support person. I was nice & he was helpful & after we finished the chat and he resolved my issue he sent me a link to order a prize! And now I can’t wait for winter (or to see if norm will let me put it on him tonight after daycare…)

Update – he did:

Norm and the hat

So what are the marketing lessons to be learned here?

  1. If you’re in customer service – kill them with kindness. I’m a paying MailChimp customer and most of my clients are not. And my question was for an account that’s not paying for this technical support. But they answered my question anyway. They could have been an asshole about it, but they were awesome. And I was rewarded for my gratefulness with a new winter hat to terrorize my dog with.
  2. If you’re speaking to customer service: BE NICE. It’s not their fault something happened to you. It’s probably some glitch in code somewhere way down the line that they’re in no way responsible for. Plus – if you’re nice you could win a prize!
  3. Empower your employees! I didn’t need a hat – or any free MailChimp swag. But I’m pretty excited for it! And now I’m writing a blog post singing their praises. Empower your team to reward your customers.
  4. Dog’s in human clothing are always funny.

I hate when I get further by complaining to a company on social media than being able to handle it politely behind chat rooms. Start by being nice and polite. Yes, you can be super frustrated too. I often start out conversations (not the one with MailChimp) with “I’m super frustrated and I know it’s not your fault so I apologize if I accidentally yell or blame you for something outside your control.” That also helps put them at ease. They know they aren’t the villain in this story, but does the customer?

Be Friendly to Customer Service.

3 Ways to Manage Your Summer Slump

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3 WAYS TO MANAGE YOUR SUMMER SLUMPLast month I attended, and spoke, at an event with my friend MaryAnn McNulty. She talked about the stages and cycles in business. It was a great reminder of what I can do to better manage my business year round, not just when times are great or I’m in a slump.

The summer is an easy time to slack off and enjoy the sunshine while it’s here. But, what I often notice is that when I slack off, I pay for it. Not in a week, but a few months down the road. So, what can you do to prevent a slump in your business?

  1. More 1:1’s – Some networking groups take time off in the summer. But that doesn’t mean you can’t still network. I like to schedule more individual meetings in the summer. Plus sitting outside drinking coffee (or something stronger) is best enjoyed with awesome new people.
  2. Networking in August – Why? August is AWESOME in the PNW! I can make an excuse to stay home and hangout in my backyard with Norm and my husband instead of putting on mascara and driving into the city to network. But it needs to happen. That’s why you’ll find me networking, even in August. And I won’t be alone.
  3. Follow Up – Summer is a great time to make sure you have your follow up systems in place. People are on vacations and not working as many hours, but you are! Make sure to follow up, and don’t use the summer excuse. Let your potential clients and referral partners tell you, don’t assume!

What do you do during your potentially slower months to ensure you don’t pay for it later?