The Story of the Orange Ball
Once upon a time, Dusty, a little speck of dust, spoke up at the dinner table. He said, "Poppa, you always pick what we have for dinner on Saturday nights, and I'm not complaining. I like roasted toast. But even though I'm the littlest one at the table, could I be allowed to decide what's for dinner on a Saturday night sometime?" Poppa thought about it for awhile and said, "Well, my little dust mite, that's a very good question. Your Momma and I will talk about it."
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| The Measuring Up Orange Ball |
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Ask.
| A couple of months later, the speck of dust spoke up again. "Poppa, have you and Momma talked about letting me pick what's for dinner on a Saturday night?"
Poppa replied, "Well, my little dust mite, the answer to your question is...we plan to do that tonight."
The next day, Poppa cleared his throat and called the family to the dinner table. He said, "I have decided to allow others in the family to decide what we have for dinner on Saturday nights. We'll start with Momma, then the kids. We'll go in order from biggest to littlest."
But the next Saturday, roasted toast was served. Momma said, "I thought I'd start our new tradition with roasted toast, because it's Poppa's favorite. By the way, Poppa, there is a sale next week and I'd love to get a new dress."
The following Saturday, roasted toast was served again. Big Dirt Ball, the largest and oldest child said, "I thought I'd continue our new tradition with roasted toast, because it's Poppa's favorite. By the way, Poppa, can I have the car tonight after dinner?"
And so it went. Until it was Dusty's saturday night. Momma brought out spaghetti with big meatballs, a thick tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese. Salads with bits of ham, egg, tomatoes and onions and topped with a sweet and sour dressing were already on the table, and then the smell of fresh-baked garlic bread filled the air as a huge loaf was carried in by Dusty himself.
The family ate and ate and ate. They were satisfied like they had never been before. The rest of the family gave up their Saturday nights - even Poppa - letting Dusty pick out the meal. They never missed a Saturday night dinner, and they began inviting their friends.
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Listen.
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Evaluate.
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As Dusty grew up and continued to apply his philosophy of giving others more, he developed an orange coat that circled his body like a shield around him. He grew orange lines across his body, signifying steps in achieving greatness, and an arrow began to climb up those steps, never faltering, only once taking a strategic pause before climbing beyond expectation.
The moral of the story? Turn the "every day" customer interaction into a memorable customer experience. That will drive long-term retention and referrals better than any marketing campaign.
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