Thanks to a friend, I have turned into small-time mileage/reward program junkie.  This extends beyond airline miles to bus trips.  I bought a ticket on Bolt Bus for a trip to NYC next week.  I forgot to login to my Bolt Bus account before buying the ticket and did not get credit for the sale (e.g. free bus ride every five or ten rides).  I e-mailed Bolt and asked if they could add the purchase to my account.  31 MINUTES LATER THEY REPLIED!  My mother doesn't even call me back that fast.

Business Analysis: Short, quick e-mail responses to any (even non-revenue generating) inquiries endear trust.  More so, you can handle many more e-mail CS issues per hour or per day than via phone.

www.boltbus.com

 
 

Welcome to my blog.  It's time that you enter the world of the promise.  As you can read in "my story" I have experience delivering on the promise and even more experience not delivering.  Over the past six months, I've gotten really into the idea of simple businesses (or simple business executions) that deliver on the promise each and every time.  I give talks, coach other business owners, and speak with friends and family on this subject.  This blog is going to cover companies/people/government/situations/whatever that DO and DO NOT deliver on the promise.  I have a personal taste for companies that at first don't deliver and then learn to deliver.  Much like my experience at Collegeboxes, the shipping and storage company I owned for four years, it's not enough to simply work hard.  You must constantly fulfill your promise to customers, employees, vendors, and other stakeholders.

I want to begin by talking about JetBlue.  As you know their business was built on low fares and great service (think TVs, blue potato chips, etc.).  When they had an operational disaster in the face of a March 2007 storm, they were devastated.  They were not going to let the critics win.  Instead, they came out with an industry-first "customer bill of rights."  This move was a credible commitment on the company's part to reestablish is tattered reputation.

I fly frequently and I know that every single traveler I've ever met raves about JetBlue.  In fact, there's almost something zealous in their rave.  It's as if they believe in their baby airline even more because of the lessons it's learned.  Could it be that screwing something up and then making right is actually more endearing to your customers then never screwing up at all?