The Nicest Welcome Note Ever
Today I downloaded the Circle app, having read about it in Mashable/TechCrunch/SAI (one of those, can’t remember). It’s a location-based app that helps you see where your friends are on a mobile phone. OK, an iPhone.
Anyway, the same day I downloaded it, I got the following email from Evan Reas, the CEO and Co-Founder:
On Thu, Apr 26, 2012 at 7:34 PM, Evan Reas <evan@discovercircle.com> wrote:
Hi Amy,I am a Co-Founder and CEO of Circle and I noticed that you downloaded our app today.
I wanted to reach out and thank you for trying it and see how your initial experience was. We made Circle to help people know when their friends and networks are nearby and we hope that you find it useful!
We are just getting started (you’re one of the first to check it out!) and I’d greatly appreciate any ideas on how we can improve or any problems that you run into and we will fix them fast! Below is my personal email and cell phone. Feel free to reach out 24/7 with any ideas or just to say hi. Thanks again and I hope to chat sometime in Circle - I am always at the end of your “Networks” in the app.
Cheers,
Evan
Wow—who does this? And why don’t they more often? What a smart, lean, and easy way to personally connect with people and make an impression when you’re just starting out as a startup. I did write Evan, complimented him on several parts of Circle, and gave him a few suggestions, too. He wrote back again, complimenting my suggestions. What a nice little rush of dopamine for us both.
This reminds me of a mail I got last night, in a very different situation, but just as astonishing and wonderful. A week ago, I stayed for a long weekend at the Four Seasons Scottsdale (Yes, I know, it was pricey, but justifiably so. I love that hotel.). A familiar survey appeared in my inbox and, uncharacteristically, I filled it out. We’d had one slow/bad experience at one of the restaurants there and I mentioned what specifically had gone wrong, but otherwise gave the hotel deserved high praise.
Within five hours (!), I received a personal email from the Director of Food and Beverage service at the hotel, apologizing for the experience and crediting my account for the specific meal. Wow! I hadn’t expected to hear back ever, as I certainly never have before from email surveys. You know what I did then? I wrote back to him, thanked him, and detailed the things I *loved* about my stay. Then, I liked them on Facebook. Funny, I’m not sure I would have had as warm a reaction if they had just comped my meal when the incident happened. It was the unexpected personal response and follow up that made me a fan for life.
It’s no longer enough to just hope for the best after a customer uses our products, put up a “Comments?” button on our sites and apps, or send out a survey. Personal service is the new dial tone. And it’s a real standout.
