Package that experience

“Experience is the brand.” C.K. Prahalad
To stand out from the crowd and catch (and hold) your customer’s over-stimulated attention you have to attach a memorable experience to your product or service.
Adidas stores provide running tracks where people can have a real experience of the shoes before buying them. Their 3000 sq ft signature store in Beijing pushes the brand boundaries and is the first to pioneer fully integrated sports and lifestyle solutions via experiential options like different virtual features centred around the core skills which will help upskill customers in their favourite disciplines,. The store also features a wide menu of services targeted at providing an holistic platform for sports and sport lifestyle such as professional running clinics, in-house fitness coaches, style advisors etc.
Being comparable to the rest doesn’t register in the customer’s memory in today’s busy, noisy and demanding world.
As a motivational speaker my own training style acknowledges the fact that we are living in an Attention Deficit Society and that the average listening span is approximately 15 minutes. So, in any presentation that lasts for 60 minutes I will engage the audience in various exercises at least 4 times. I would also ensure that everyone was getting the full experience by using different styles of presentation: visual, auditory and kinaesthetic.
Remember people buy into and remember emotion, but are rarely moved by cold facts.

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THE BREATH OF POSSIBILITY

“I had asthma from a very young age. I was often caught for breath and had to stay in bed because I did not have enough air to physically move. By the time I was in my early twenties I was on high doses of medication to control the asthma.
In 1997, I graduated from Trinity College Dublin and started work.
I stumbled across an article about a Russian doctor, Konstantin Buteyko, who claimed to know and reverse the cause of asthma. Upon further enquiry, I contacted people in Australia and learned more about the technique. Logically it made sound sense – breathe through your nose and keep your breathing quiet. Simple as it seems, Buteyko discovered that the cause of asthma is over breathing. By using his methods, my asthma improved dramatically!
When I was a full two years symptom and medication free and still in the same job, I realised that I wasn’t happy. Something was missing from my life and an emptiness or hollowness prevailed. Driving to my hometown, the thought struck me that asthmatics should be made aware of correct breathing and other lifestyle factors. There was no doubt that it worked. I was living proof!
That weekend was a momentous one for me. It felt as though a weight had been lifted from me and even though I had not thought about the intricacies of starting a business, I had an overwhelming comfort that everything was going to be all right. I contacted the Buteyko clinic of Moscow and by 2002 had completed my training.
As I think back, I can see that if I had given starting a business much thought AsthmaCare would not exist! I was entering an area that was traditionally the domain of doctors and the pharmaceutical industry. I was also aware that some people around me thought I was mad. However, the overwhelming feeling that I experienced that weekend – that I was not going to fail – became the driving force behind my work.
I am now one of a few people who can say that they love their job. I apply myself to it effortlessly. In the past six years, I have written several books including the best seller Asthma Free Naturally. Thousands of asthma patients have attended my clinics and AsthmaCare is now taught in seven countries. There is no stress in this, nor is there much effort.”
(Excerpt Basics before Buzz.)
Patrick McKeown has just launched a new book:
Anxiety Free: stop worrying and quieten your mind
(includes free relaxation CD)
Priced 14 Euro approx
Author Patrick McKeown
ISBN-10: 0954599640
240 pages

Available Easons and www.amazon.co.uk

www.asthmacare.ie

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Values to ponder – culture to die for!

What are the core values of Zappos?
1. Deliver WOW Through Service
2. Embrace and Drive Change
3. Create Fun and a Little Weirdness
4. Be Adventurous, Creative and Open-Minded
5. Pursue Growth and Learning
6. Build Open and Honest Relationships With Communication
7. Build a Positive Team and Family Spirit
8. Do More with Less
9. Be Passionate and Determined
10. Be Humble

for more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10323197

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A day in the life…

Without doubt stories have the ability to weave a certain magic on audiences – recently I was in the presence of an eighty year old gentleman who reminded me that years ago you had to pay to participate in sports events!
Tom was a high jumper in fifties and sixties and he spoke of the need for some “strategic thinking” on when to enter the event.
“I used to wait until everyone had jumped to their limit and then I would pay my entrance fee and jump to victory!”
Imagine if for a day the clock was turned back, and all professional athletes from all codes had to pay to perform?

Later that day I went for my usual coffee break in the local village. That day the very talented Daniel Day Lewis was in town and enjoying the breathtaking beauty of the West of Ireland. One of the staff reminded him of his last order when he visited three years previously. I couldn’t but think of how impressive it would be if every customer’s order was remembered with such accuracy – you would definately be in exceptional service territory. The moral of the story – treat every customer like a superstar and see what happens!
And finally watched the post match interviews of some of the defeated managers and players in the World Cup – unfortunately a significant theme running through most – “it wasnt my fault!” ( Couldn’t but think of some famous politicians and others that shared this pattern.)
Has the era of personal responsibility passed …or did it ever truly begin?

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Five ways to kickstart economy

1. Within the political system, a Minister should not hold the position unless they have a proven track record in this field. In the absence of a suitable candidate from within, the focus should be on recruiting the industry’s best for the position. Unfortunately to be re-elected current Ministers have to have a penchant for “pothole politics” so their focus isnt on driving Ireland Inc forward.

2. Business people should man enterprise agencies – the mindset of a civil servant tends to be very different from the mindset of an entrepreneur – this mismatch can cause tension and missed opportunities.

3. There need to be a radical refocus in the School and University system towards instilling the two most highly paid intelligences in the world; interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligence. We are not looking for grades machines, we need people with passion and purpose.

4. Everyone needs to understand that they have a role to play in the countries future. We need to move away from the blame culture and focus on what we can do today to improve our lot. If we all embraced that mentality – hope, not gloom would become currency and hope is the catalyst for growth.

5. The media need to realise what an incredibly powerful role they have in today’s world. In the absence of political and spiritual leadership, the media need to become prophets of possibility, not doom and gloom.

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