Beautiful weather, great entertainment and of course the lure of the ever popular fire truck tour were just some of the factors resulting in a great turn out for this year’s Airdrie fest.  TAN decided to throw their hat in the ring by registering a booth and thanks to the efforts of several members it was a smashing success!  Our challenge was to find something that would attract attendees (especially families) to our booth and to fulfill our mandate of businesses helping businesses.  Our answer was BINGO! 

Creating Bingo cards which listed the other exhibitors in the squares made it fun and challenging when touring the festival and helped drive more foot traffic to the exhibitors’ booths.  There was nothing but positive feedback all around.  At the end of the day we were completely out of cards and super impressed by the effort put in by the participants.

However our success could not have been possible without the coordination and assistance of many others.  As such we would like to take a moment to thank the following:

Thank you to Lois Jones, Erin Paterson and the rest of the team over at Here’s the Scoop for all their help with the design of the Bingo Cards, the TAN Business Cards and care of the Door Prizes.  Everything looked amazing!

Thank you to Meghan Tudor (Sign Concepts) for the new TAN Banner.  We’re looking forward to using it at all our upcoming events.

Thank you to Charlene Gize (AWI Insurance), Muriel Bostick (Euphoria Hair and Salon), and Carolyn Christie (Kick it to the Curb Recycling) for their generous donations towards the Bingo Door Prizes. 

Thank you to Colette Storms (Summerhill Florists) for her donation of helium for the booth balloons.

Thank you to Clayton Falk (Effective Solutions) for his assistance with the booth set up.  Especially wrangling  those balloons!  

Our booth was manned during the day by Jennifer Benner (Benner Database Designs), Clayton Falk (Effective Solutions), Charlene Gize (AWI Insurance) and Muriel Bostick (Euphoria Hair & Salon), so again a BIG thank you for your time and dedication.

Finally thank you to Muriel and Kerry Bostick (Shilo Storey Real Estate) for helping with the take down and clean up. 

In addition to our members’ efforts many of the other exhibitors also pitched in and donated some amazing door prizes for the Bingo.  We could not have asked for a better response and if one were looking for the epitome of cooperation our Airdrie Fest Bingo was it.  Great job everyone and I think it’s safe to say we’ll be back next year for sure!

“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did but they will never forget how you made them feel.”  Maya Angelou

As far as customer service goes, no truer words were ever spoken.  You may not be perfect, you may not get it right every time but if the customer has a positive experience when dealing with your business, they will always return and may just become some of your most loyal advocates.  Sylvia Schultz who is the owner of Jet Wash Auto Spa with many years experience in customer service and employee management has 3 key factors for great customer service:

Esthetics – You only get one chance to make a first impression and something as simple as cleanliness creates an impact.  Take a look around.  Is it clean?  Does it look organized?  Does it need a fresh coat of paint?  If it’s broken fix it.  Even something as simple as adding a potted flower plant in front of your store front can really make a difference to your customers’ perception of your business.  Perhaps your business goes to the customer not the other way around?  Even then, is the company vehicle clean?  Is the logo clearly visible?  Is there an employee uniform?  Professionalism and presentation in any company cannot be undervalued.

Adaptability – This is the “Can Do” approach to dealing with customers.  We’ve all had those requests by customers asking for things that we simply can’t do.  9 times out of 10 we simply tell them no and move on.  However Sylvia believes that we should always say, “No, but this is what I CAN DO...”  For example a customer phones a florist and requests his wife’s favourite flower.  The florist does not have it in stock.  She could either say, “Sorry we’re all out.  I can’t help you.” This would result in zero business for the florist and probably a frustrated customer.  Or she could say, “Sorry we’re all out of that particular flower but what is your wife’s favourite colour?  Perhaps I could create a bouquet for her using these other flowers that are on sale right now?  They’re very lovely and they look amazing!”  Completely different outcome by simply thinking outside the box. 

If you really can’t do it, can you refer the customer to another business associate?  Why not?!  Same situation but the customer requests an apple tree for their back yard.  The florist obviously can’t do it but perhaps she can refer the customer to a Garden Centre down the street who she knows sells apple trees.  A referral creates business for other members in your network, they will respond in kind and the customer will walk away feeling as though their request was accomplished.  A winning situation all around.

Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) – What is measured can be improved.  This can be done on several levels.  It can be done with employees.  Perhaps setting a goal for them to achieve with a reward system in place.  For example, improving sales by 10% that week will be rewarded with a free lunch.  Have a monthly brainstorming session where ideas can be brought to the table and kudos can be given out for jobs well done.  Happy employees are what can make or break a company.  Challenging your employees keeps them focused and committed.  In turn always remember to acknowledge their efforts, even if it’s just a simple but heartfelt, “Thank you.” 

KPI’s can also be done with customers.  Ask them to fill out an online survey for a free cup of coffee.  Create a Referral/Reward program using discounts or coupons.  Encourage them write a review on your Facebook page.  It never hurts to ask.  If you set clear expectations both employees and customers will respond and may just surprise you.

Thursday, June 26th marked TAN’s last luncheon meeting for the summer until we resume again in the fall.  So far it’s been a very busy year.  First and foremost we would like to congratulate our newly elected board of directors:

President:  Keith Wilkinson – Investors Group
Vice President: Jennifer Benner – Benner Database Designs
Treasurer & Secretary:  Shilo Storey – RE/MAX Real Estate (Central)
Social Media:  Lois Jones – Here’s the Scoop
Events Co-ordinator:  Colette Storms – Summerhill Florist Ltd
Events Co-ordinator:  Colleen Reid – Reidesign Home Staging
Marketing Committee Director:  Clayton Falk – Effective Solutions

We wish to extend a huge “Thank You!” to Tony Gize from Airdrie Canvas for all his hard work last year as President.  We are sad to see him step down but we wish him all the best in his future endeavours.

Some other highlights included:

    - A presentation by the Calgary Catholic Immigration Services (CCIS) – A non-profit organization that assists immigrants and refugees with their integration into Canadian society.  They are a fantastic resource for hiring and staffing solutions.
    - An information session hosted by the City of Airdrie on the new Organics Program.
    - A motivational seminar put on by Business Coach Phil Gilkes
    - A Business Financials seminar given by Bruce Tannas with Community Futures West.
    - The launch of the new Think Airdrie Networking website and beautiful logo design by Robyn Pearson with A Friend Indeed.

We also hosted several presentations by our own members giving us a great overview of their companies and their expertise in their respective fields.  With the new TAN website we will be showcasing these seminars in our Events page which we are excited to share in the upcoming fall session. 

While TAN is on break we are certainly not idle.  Look for several of our members in the Airdrie Parade today (Happy Canada Day) and the upcoming Alberta Summer Games.  We are also setting up a booth at the Airdrie Festival September 6th so feel free to stop by and say, “Hi!”

Have a great summer!!!