It took more than 3,000 miles, a trip to urgent care for asthma, altitude sickness treatments, a bloody nose that made a hotel room a crime scene, a hail storm, severe weather while fighting traffic during Stanley Cup celebrations and … well, anyway, we’re home from a trip to the Rocky Mountains. I bought new tires. I want to tell …
The open letter to Ford’s CEO
Brian Pasch’s open letter to Ford CEO Jim Farley has gone viral. (If you’re not familiar, Pasch is a longtime consultant helping car dealerships go online.) Farley’s comments and Pasch’s letter and whatever happens next is not content for this blog. But the comments thread on Pasch’s post? They’re worth a read. Some appreciate his advocacy for dealers. Some think …
How car dealerships look from the outside
I recently posted about “the end of car dealerships.” Consider this part 2: Wired recently published “The Incredible Shrinking Car Dealership.” First off, this is a good look for anybody outside automotive retail at the pressures going on within the dealership model. And for those inside, this is a good look at how you are perceived. Second off, I’ve been …
Horn Sections Make Rock Better: Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps
This is in honor of Ed, a manager at one of my clients. We had a long talk last week about how the ’90s changed music for the better. You can look up plenty of articles singing the praises of 1991: Metal had its swan songs in Guns N’ Roses’s Use Your Illusion and Metallica’s Black album. Alternative went from …
How close is your customer experience to this bookstore?
This is a quick, charming and moving read. It is the true story of a couple who opened a bookstore in the middle of the pandemic. Small businesses didn’t fare well during lockdowns. This one is thriving. I believe that words–the building blocks of books–are special. I had better, since the God I worship used words to speak the universe …
The end of dealerships? Don’t miss the real action item
Service guru Chris Collins has been right about an awful lot of things in automotive retail. See his animated “Pet the dog,” even if you are not in automotive, for some of his genius. His latest video making the rounds has a provocative title. Time will tell if he is right … but watch the video. He and his cohost …
Horn Sections Make Rock Better: The Floral Dance
A few months ago, I realized I was running out of rock songs with horn sections. I sent out a call on social media: Send me your horn section picks. A British cousin sent me this song that is, shall we say, rock-adjacent. Being an American, I was not familiar with the BBC broadcaster Wogan–unless you count a bizarre homage …
107: Nintendo’s tips for customer loyalty: A clean, well-lighted metaverse
Who wants to take out a home loan and spend your leisure hours paying it off? Apparently quite a few Nintendo customers. … Mike and Mark explore the magic of Animal Crossing–and five tips it gives for keeping customers loyal and employees engaged. We would love your questions and comments for future episodes: Email Mike and Mark. Listen here … …
Horn Sections Make Rock Better: Hugo the Human Cannonball
More cheating this week, but I love Ray Stevens. It’s pop novelty, not rock. But he’s clever. This song is clever, dark and somehow sweet. Don’t ask me to explain the MS Paint-esque video. I think he deserves better. Now for the mystery: This is the official recording on the official Ray Stevens YouTube page. But it is NOT the …
Horn Sections Make Rock Better: Wild Weekend
I’m cheating today. You may have noticed I am really strict about featured songs including horn SECTIONS, not just a horn. But: I happen to have worked with Mickey Kipler, the sax player for this band that toured with Roy Orbison and appeared on American Bandstand. Years after meeting him, I met a seasoned sales veteran in another state. He …