Copy of an email I recently sent to all InternetSafety.com employees…

Let me start by saying that I believe that Disney has one of the, if not the, best  customer service organizations out there.  My great experiences with their customer service is still way ahead of my not-so-great experiences.  However, no organization is perfect and Disney is also an example of this as well.  Consider the following email response I received from them while booking their shuttle service to and from the airport:

Thank you for contacting Member Services.

In order to confirm your Disney’s Magical Express reservation, please email the reservation number and the names of each of the guests along with their flight information.

Thank you.

Maybe nothing seems strange on this first reading.  Re-read the email but this time keep in mind that I supplied my name, the date of our arrival, my email address, and my member number when I sent in my initial request… all of the same information I used when I booked my reservation.

Did you catch it this time?  With 30 seconds of research the person that responded to this email should have been able to locate my reservation.  Instead, I had to log into the Disney website, locate my reservation number, and send it back to them.  I had to take the time to send them information that they already had.

The lesson for us here at InternetSafety.com is to not ask the customer to provide us with information we should already have.  Whether it’s laziness or simply wanting to get the ticket queue cleared out so we can go home, the customer will notice. Keep this in mind the next time you are about to fire the quick response to a customer to get them “off your back�.  Instead, take the few extra seconds needed to put the service in customer service and provide the best possible response to the customer.  They will appreciate the effort even if they never mention it!

I am wrapping up my first bout with Strep.  I can now say I have been there, done that, and have the nasty bruise on my backside to prove it.  I was in no way prepared for the havoc that Strep would wreak and I have no desire to ever get it again.

As I was driving into work on my first post-Strep day it occurred to me how I can let “Strep” creep into my professional life and make me less effective as an employee/leader.  It usually starts off as something small.  Maybe a spur of the moment comment like:

“They didn’t ask me before making that decision.”
“They don’t pay me enough to do that!”
“What has the company done for me this year?”
“I’m not invested so why should I care?”

Before I know it, I have let this little “germ” fester until I can no longer operate at my full capacity.  If I am not careful I can even spread this “germ” to my co-workers, they can catch it, and in turn they become a less effective employee.

So what should I do when this happens?  Exactly what I did for my Strep.  I addressed the problem.  In my case it was a giant shot in the backside.  Funny… many times that is what it takes at work too!

This week I got to send the following email to all InternetSafety.com employees announcing a new major endorsement for Safe Eyes:

InternetSafety.com is excited to announce a new partnership that begins today with the Dave Ramsey Show.  Dave Ramsey is a talk radio host that is best known for his frank advice in regard to personal finances that he offers live to callers that call into his show.  He currently has a listening audience of over 3,000,000 people per week and is heard on 375 radio stations across the United States.   His company also offers seminars and conferences as well as individual and small group materials on the topic of personal finances.   Beginning today Safe Eyes will be featured in a 60-second spot each day as well as having links from the Dave Ramsey website.

This post is solely the opinion of the author and has not been reviewed or approved by InternetSafety.com, Inc. The thoughts and opinions of InternetSafety.com, Inc. may differ from that of the author.

last night while Aaron and I were at dinner with some friends we received notification from Apple that Safe Eyes Mobile had been approved and added to the appstore.  It took 2 months and 3 days for the approval but we got it.  The interest in this product has been amazing so far so it great to be at a point where people can actually begin to use it.  If you are looking for an Internet filter to protect your kids’ Internet access on their iPhone or iPod Touch then Safe Eyes Mobile is what you need.  Head over to www.internetsafety.com and check it out.

This post is solely the opinion of the author and has not been reviewed or approved by InternetSafety.com, Inc.  The thoughts and opinions of InternetSafety.com, Inc. may differ from that of the author.

I figured out the other day that in 2009 I have spent 5 nights sleeping at my house and 9 nights (counting tonight) sleeping in hotels.  Hopefully this trend will not continue all year because I don’t want my bed to miss me too much.  I am about to leave the office for an overnight trip this time.  I am not comlaining though.  This week, one of the businesses near our office filed for bankruptcy.  On the other hand we have so many things going on right now it is hard to tell which way is up sometimes.  The travel is hard on the marathon training though.  It may be after 10:00 tonight before I am able to get in the 6 mile run that I am supposed to run today.  I am hoping that my knee will be back to normal and not bother me again.  I plan to stay away from treadmills for the time being.