What's Your Purple Goldfish? How to Win Customers and Influence Word of Mouth

by Stan Phelps

  Here is the thumbnail of the program straight from the good hands folks at Allstate : {Endnote 83}

  Good Hands Roadside Assistance is the first free-to-join, pay-per-use, roadside assistance service that is available to all drivers, not just Allstate customers. Allstate created Good Hands Roadside to offer protection to the 35 million American households that don’t have roadside assistance services. The company also wants to provide an alternative for the 52 million households with roadside assistance that pay annual fees. Studies show the average driver uses their service only once every three years.

  “With the launch of Good Hands Roadside, Allstate continues to broaden the definition of protection with new products and services consumers want in the ways they want them,” said Chuck Paul, group vice president, Emerging Businesses, for Allstate. “This is just another option individuals can use to protect what matters most.”

  Allstate suggests taking two minutes to pre-register before road “ Mayhem ” strikes at www.goodhandsroadside.com to improve response time.

  Three Marketing Lagniappe Takeaways:

  1. Build value into your lagniappe and keep it relevant. Roadside Assist is a nice compliment to the positioning of Allstate and their “good hands” promise of protection.

  2. Make it easy to understand and join. The value proposition is straightforward: No fees, a reliable service and pay a low price only when you use it.

  3. Benefit your customers, but open it up to prospects if possible. This is a great way to establish a relationship with future customers.

  13. A free pizza and make it snappy [PG #205]

  Matt Sheehan recommends the Alligator Lounge in Brooklyn. A place where the pizza is always on the house.

  Here is a snippet from the NY Magazine’s Karen Hudes on the Lounge: {Endnote 84}

  Inside what was once the Galleria pizza place, this bar’s turquoise walls, pink flamingos and Romanesque details don’t quite gel, yet one crucial feature remains intact: the arched, wood-burning oven. Because of the owners’ sensational idea of serving free personal pizzas every night until 3:30 a.m., this unremarkable joint has turned into a lovable hangout that’s a great first or last barhop stop. Young and old Williamsburg folk congregate along the bar, in the maroon, open-angle vinyl booths, and around the green pool table. A booming jukebox and Big Buck Hunter Pro game in back provide entertainment. A selection of 10 draft beers compliments the delicious crisp-crust pies, which are on the house with every drink; toppings like pepperoni, caramelized onions and flavorful sweet sausage are available for an extra $2.

  Here is a review of the place from a customer:

  I don’t want the place to get so crowded that I can’t get in. This is a fantastic place, with Widmer Hefeweizen on tap, and of course… free pizza. I didn’t know about the pizza when I wandered in mid-week. When the bartender told me about it, I pictured pizza pockets… but it’s wonderful wood oven thin crust pizza. You pay two bucks for your first topping and one buck for after that. I had mine loaded, so it set me back a whole five bucks. The same pizza in Manhattan would have set me back 15 bucks. Would I be back? I’m thinking of getting an apartment above the place!

  14. Your choice of coffee or ice cream

  Stew Leonard’s is a grocery store without peer. It personifies the concept of marketing lagniappe. There are a handful of extras the store offers, but my favorite is the free ice cream or coffee with a purchase of $100 or more in groceries. It’s that little extra or “WOW” according to Stew that makes all the difference.

  I had the opportunity to hear Stew recount a great story about the power of word of mouth:

  About 40 years ago Stew was asked by the local elementary school to come out and speak on Career Day. The principal asked him to talk about the milk business. As Stew pulled into the parking lot he saw a fire truck parked in front of the school with kids all around it. When he walked through the door he saw a room about the Air Force playing a movie with jet airplanes. It was filled with kids. Across the hall was a police officer and he was showing a packed classroom about various police equipment and weapons. Soon he walked down the hall and found his classroom with a sign on the door that read “THE MILK BUSINESS”. Stew walked in the room to find only three kids sitting there, two of which were the sons of one of his managers. For the next 30 minutes he talked about the dairy business and running a store. At the end of the talk he thanked the kids, reaching into his pocket and handing them each a coupon for a free ice cream. The kids left and Stew waited in his classroom for the second of the two Career Day sessions. He waited and waited... no kids. After a while the principal came rushing in, “Stew... I don’t know what you told those kids, but we have to move your next session to the school auditorium.”

  15. A very nice school of flying purple goldfish [PG #579]

  JetBlue builds value into their flight offerings. They know the little things can make the biggest impact. They understand it takes more than the proverbial half can of soda.

  Let’s look at each “differentiator”:

  Full can of soda and unlimited brand name snacks. What’s with the cup of ice with some soda in it by other airlines? You wouldn’t put up with that treatment on the ground.

  First bag free. Southwest has done an amazing job of promoting that “Bags Fly Free”, but JetBlue is singing from the same prayer sheet. Saving customers either $25 or $50 per round trip is an added value.

  36 channels that allow you to watch... when you want to watch them. JetBlue gives you the two things that traditional air travel takes away: CHOICE and CONTROL.

  The most legroom in coach. Being 6′2″ I can tell you this is key. Nothing more annoying than the person in front of you reclining into your kneecaps.

  Direct flights. Avoiding layovers is key. It saves time, hassle and annoyance.

  16. Pioneers in handshake marketing [PG #295]

  I came across Umpqua Bank in Joseph Jaffe’s book Flip the Funnel. {Endnote 85} Umpqua understands branded acts of kindness and takes the concept “to the bank.”

  The chain based in Portland, Oregon has tellers place customers’ cash on black wooden trays along with a silver chocolate coin embellished with the bank’s logo. Add in free wifi, plus their own brand of free gourmet coffee and you’ve got some very purple goldfish.

  17. One more flying Goldfish for good measure [PG #773]

  Submitted via e-mail by Gene Willis:

  “KLM gives Delft Blue Houses to customers who fly business class.”

  Here is a little additional background on the history of the houses courtesy of Theo Kiewiet : {Endnote 86}

  The KLM houses are presents to travelers aboard KLM flights in Business and Royal Class. They have been presented over a long period and thus have become collector items. There are currently over 90 different types which are each individually numbered in order of release.

  There is Dutch Genever, 35% alcohol, in the houses, which are in fact bottles with a cork and seal on top. Sometimes the genever has been drunk but mostly the empty bottles were empty all along. On flights to some countries with strict alcohol restrictions empty houses are presented. On some of the houses a sticker explains this by referring to customs regulations. Sometimes there is a cork and seal and sometimes there isn’t (and never was) on the empty bottles.

  KLM started issuing these miniature bottles in 1952. Airlines were not allowed to give presents to their customers because of unfair competition. So, KLM had some Blue Delft houses made, and filled them with genever (gin). Then, of course, their competitors complained, “KLM ís giving presents to their customers.” KLM said, “May we decide how we serve our drinks? Is their a law which tells me drinks have to be served in a glass?”… and so it all started.

  Chapter 14

  #2 - Thinking Outside the Bowl

  “Here is a simple but powerful rule: always give people more than what they expect to get.”

  - Nelson Boswel

  The second type of purple goldfish involves those
In the Bag / Out of the Box. These are little unexpected things that are given as a surprise.

  Let’s look at eight examples:

  1. It’s all in the design and details [PG #636]

  Spotlight: Johnny Cupcakes bakes its way via a tweet by David Knies @davidknies:

  “@9INCHmarketing stan check out @johnnycupcakes and what they do in their shipments to customers!”

  It turns out that Johnny Cupcakes spends time creating a few purple goldfish to accompany his mail order shipments. Here is a comment from a forum: {Endnote 86}

  “What a great display. So, there was a. the box, b. the tissue paper, c. the bag, d. the shirt, e. the hang tag, f. the oven mitt label, g. the home alone card, h. the business card, i. the button, and j. the candy.”

  Wait a second... I didn’t see any cupcakes in that package??? Turns out that Cupcakes is Johnny’s nickname. His name is Earle and Johnny Earle doesn’t make cupcakes. He makes T-shirts and Johnny knows marketing.

  Here are three marketing takeaways from Johnny Cupcakes:

  1. Details, details, details – Johnny understands that you need to do the little things to stand out in a sea of sameness. You need to create an experience for your customers and make your brand talkable. The product in ovens + bakery counters, the oven mitt hang tags, the takeout boxes and the 80’s T-shirt designs all play a part in creating the Johnny Cupcakes brand.

  2. Keep it fresh and limited – Despite numerous offers by department and specialty stores, Johnny prefers to keep it personal and only sells his products online or in his four stores (hometown of Hull, Boston, Los Angeles and London). All of his shirts are limited editions, some of which are runs of 100 or less.

  3. Be approachable and take care of your fans – Part of Johnny’s appeal is his personal story of a scrappy kid selling T-shirts out of an ‘86 Toyota. He’s an American success story of following your passion. Johnny makes himself accessible by blogging, releasing videos and even hosting customer appreciation events.

  2. Minty Fresh and Packed with Detail [PG #437]

  Courtesy of University of North Carolina Professor Joe Bob Hester @joebobhester. Joe Bob forwarded this article from Ron Green Jr. at the Charlotte Observer. {Endnote 87} It highlights the apparel brand Peter Millar and its founder Scott Knott.

  Here is an excerpt:

  “They remember the mints.”

  When boxes of golf shirts and shorts and other high-end menswear are shipped from the Peter Millar office and warehouse, the packing list includes mints.

  When customers unpack their orders, they are struck by three things: The quality of what they’ve ordered; each item comes out of the box in the order it’s listed on the packing sheet; and, mints are included for the pleasure of it.

  It’s a little thing but this year when a few boxes arrived short of mints (they ran out briefly), phone calls started coming.

  At Peter Millar, located in a low-profile office park on the southwest edge of Raleigh, the attention to detail, commitment to quality and a North Carolina-grown appreciation of classic menswear has helped catapult the company into one of the hottest brands on the market, particularly for golfers.

  3. Adopt a Finger Puppet [PG #549]

  In the words of Ariel Savrin-Jacobs:

  I spoke to you after blogging about your purple goldfish project {Endnote 88} this summer when I interned for STELLAService. I’m happy to finally say I’ve found a purple goldfish! I checked your list, so if it’s updated I think this is a new one.

  Last week I bought a few fun things online for my dorm room from PerpetualKid.com. It was my first time buying from them, and I’ll certainly be a repeat customer. The site is overall really fun (for example, I got measuring cups that stack like a Russian nesting doll), and it definitely didn’t hurt that my order placed at 10:00 p.m. on the 18th, shipped the next morning and arrived on the 20th. But the best part of it all was the surprise “finger monster” (for lack of better words) sitting on top when I opened the package. While I don’t quite know what to do with it, I sure got a kick out of it, and I bet many other customers probably did too. I’ve attached a picture of this rubber “finger monster.” Hope it helps on your way to 1,001 and I will let you know if I come across any others!

  4. A saucy purple goldfish [PG #223]

  A fixed tasting menu, legendary meatballs, free wine and a jar of sauce makes Maroni Cuisine a Long Island Legend. Maroni Cuisine of Northport pours into the Purple Goldfish Project courtesy of Clark Johnson:

  Maroni Cuisine in Northport, NY is consistently rated by Zagat voters as either the best or among the best restaurants on Long Island. Mike Maroni beat Bobby Flay in a throwdown! The meals are exclusively customized tasting menus, prix fixe, with all the wine you can drink included. At the end of the meal, hours later, guests are generally presented with jars of Maroni Pasta sauce as a “Thank You.” Once you have used it, you want to go back for more (both the meal and the sauce!)

  5. This Goldfish Has Balls (three of them to be exact) [PG #245]

  Will Prest is from Minneapolis and he shared this gem from the Twin Cities.

  Michael Lynne’s Tennis Shop

  “When you pick up your professionally strung racquet, you get a new can of Penn balls with the Michael Lynne Tennis logo and name in big letters on it. It is a nice gesture, plus his balls are left all over the clubs around town. Here is the website. {Endnote 89} It got me to visit the site and I read a few of the articles on there… they were a nice surprise.”

  Companies that tend to really get the concept of marketing lagniappe , tend to have multiple examples in their arsenal. Maybe it has something to do with fish wanting to swim in schools.

  Here is an excerpt from an article about Michael Lynne in a tennis industry publication:

  It’s not only about sales. Fully supportive of Minneapolis’ large tennis community, Lynne puts kids’ and local team photos on his back wall along with local tennis stories and news. And he’s happy to offer tennis tips to his customers and encourages them to “test drive” racquets for free.

  Clothing is grouped by size and the price is always visible. Racks are never overcrowded and pieces are displayed on the wall so customers can see them as “outfits.” When customers try on clothes, they find large dressing rooms with excellent lighting. Also, all the employees don various tennis outfits to work so customers can see what the clothes actually look like “on.”

  The store also has six stringing machines, so, as Michael notes, “You can have your racquets strung while you wait.” But even “waiting” at Michael Lynne’s Tennis Shop is a pleasure. Customers can watch the Tennis Channel on TV while having a snack or sipping gourmet coffee the shop supplies.

  “We’re a destination point,” Lynne says. “People have to drive here, so we want to make sure our staff is well-informed on the merchandise and offers great customer service.”

  “Michael and Mimzy personify customer service, and they teach their staff to take this approach,” says Greg Mason, senior director of sales for HEAD. “It’s the little things like greeting each customer, then thanking them as they leave, writing thank-you notes to repeat customers — that really makes the difference.”

  The staff is always upbeat and motivated. “It’s apparent they get it,” says Mason. “The Minneapolis tennis market is the real winner.”

  Let me count the purple goldfish:

  Free balls with restringing

  Free racquet demo’s

  Stringing while you wait in style

  Large well lit dressing rooms

  Handwritten thank you notes.

  I love the second to last paragraph of the article, “It’s the little things... that make the biggest difference.” AMEN

  6. A welcome little extra with your sugar and spice [PG #718]

  Taken from a tweet about Penzey’s Spices by @nelderini

  “Bumpersticker lagniappe included in my peppercorns order from Penzey’s. Classy. Love those guys.”

  7. Call me
… [PG #988]

  Submitted via e-mail by Vanessa Khedouri:

  Rebecca Minkoff bags all have an extra business card in them – it has a guy’s picture and on the back there is a handwritten note that says “call me”, signed by “Vincent” with a phone number When you call [give it a try at +1 646 420 1475], there is a recording of a message from “Vincent” – a guy with a sexy French accent – who references his friend, “Rebecca” (the designer) and her website. I love that touch and it feels personal!

  According to Rebecca Minkoff:

  “I find cute pics and have them printed on cards and people actually do call! When customers call they hear a guy’s voice and he is French. Some people call and think they met the guy the night before. It’s kind of funny to hear some of the messages!”

  8. The little extra here is in the bag [PG #772]

  Submitted via e-mail by Will Villota:

  “Haven’t heard it called lagniappe, but Zipcar sometimes leaves gift bags in random cars. Customers reporting that they found them also receive bonus Zipcar time. Hope this helps!”

  Chapter 15

  #3 - Sampling

  “One of the best ways to motivate consumers to try new products is through sampling. Once a consumer tries a new product through sampling, it’s likely they will add it to their shopping list.”

  - Julie Hall

  Sampling is the lowest hanging fruit in marketing