Service surprises: the power of small, unexpected actions

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Welcome to everyone who is new to The Hero's Voice, our e-newsletter devoted to highlighting heroic stories in everyday business. These stories explore the concepts outlined in our strategic brand process, The Hero's Quest, which shows you how to become a hero to your members.

While most legends tend to focus on the big heroic actions -- saving the busload of kids, stopping the evil villain from taking over the world, rescuing the damsel in distress -- there's also power in the small actions companies can take to be heroes to their customers, especially when they're unexpected. Here are a few recent examples we'd like to share.

Wood Waste Management

Portland is pretty big on recycling. Wood Waste Management takes your yard debris and old lumber, and grinds it into materials like bark dust and compost for reuse in the yard. Well, after a LONG, grimy weekend tearing down an old deck, my husband and I finally had all the waste material loaded into our trailer to take to Wood Waste Management.

All was going well until we got there, only to find the gate locked. They had closed at 4:00, and we were six minutes late. We were quite disappointed, as that would mean trying to find another time to come back. But as we drove around to the exit gate, which was still open, we noticed a guy waving at us to come in! We drove in, and although their office was closed and the scales were shut down, the employee looked at our load, gave us a (very reasonable) price, and let us drop our load. Talk about being thrilled! It may not seem like a heroic act, but even though it meant he likely had to stay later that evening, he certainly made our day and earned our loyalty.

New Seasons Grocery

New Seasons is a locally-owned grocery store whose brand is based on being "The friendliest store in town." One day I stopped in to shop with my daughter and twin nephews in tow. It was after school, and they were hungry. (Note: It's a REALLY BAD IDEA to shop with 8- and 9-year olds when they haven't had a snack yet!)

By the time we made it to the meat counter, the kids were going nuts and I was ready to give up. Sensing the turmoil amongst our small group, one of the employees came out from behind the counter with three pepperoni sticks and offered them to the kids. Their faces lit up, and I couldn't have been more grateful. It was a small act of kindness, but made a HUGE difference in our experience. I got my shopping done, and the kids lived to see another day.

New Seasons' policy is to take care of the customer, and it shows in how their employees treat people. If they accidentally charge the wrong amount on something, they don't make the customer wait to fix the error: they open the register drawer, reimburse the difference, and send the customer on their merry way. They'll cut open a piece of fruit if you want to see what it tastes like. If you need to find something, they take you to exactly where it is in the store. Once when it was the holidays and all the check-out lines were backed up, they went around with bakery samples to offer to the waiting customers. Small actions, but heroic nonetheless.

Are there small actions your company can take to surprise and delight your customers or members? Do you occasionally do something unexpected simply because it's a nice thing to do? Being a hero doesn't mean doing only the big stuff -- heroes are powerful for the fact that they take action day in and day out. Small actions say "I was thinking of you."

If you have a "small action story" to share, please click on the Share Your Story link above. We can all benefit from ideas on how to save the day.

Lisa and the Creative Abandon team