Issue 073: How Can a Festival Offer Business Insights?
Have you recently attended a festival or fundraiser? Or if you haven’t participated lately, think back to your last one. Did you notice any parallels between the event and business? Over the weekend, I spent two days at the Pittsburgh Irish Festival and had several “aha” business moments.
Persist through challenges. From the smiling faces of the staff, volunteers, and attendees, you wouldn’t have guessed that the Festival took a significant hit two out of the last three years. Although the 2020 pandemic caused a financial nosedive for many organizations, the Pittsburgh Irish Festival experienced one in 2018, too, when the location flooded due to heavy rains. Not allowing two tough years with unpredictable and uncontrollable circumstances to stop them, the organizers bounced-up by kicking off this year’s Festival with a crowd favorite: Screaming Orphans band straight from Ireland on the main stage. Imagine the conversations between the Ireland and American Embassies to get this sister band to Pittsburgh. Persistence generates success.
Build a community environment. Building a strong network community fosters connections with others, offers a space to share experiences, and cheer for each other. Organizations become stronger when members (or attendees) feel a sense of belonging to a community. Sharing a common interest or working toward a common goal creates unity. More importantly, when people feel connected to their communities, they feel happier. In a Sense of Community study conducted by the University of Florida Bureau of Economic and Business Research Center, research showed 55 percent of Florida residents who felt like they were part of the community were happy and 39 percent of residents felt very happy. From the big smiles, friendly hand waves, and lively conversations I had over the weekend, the attendees genuinely experienced that sense of community. Wouldn’t it be great to have this uplifting community environment in every business!
Focus on the customer experience. Ironically, on Saturday, I was asked to work the Raffle Booth and sell $20 tickets for the private Ireland trip. Ticket sales were not so great the day before, and this was an important fundraiser. There was some pushback because the prize didn’t include airfare. Having fun, I focused on the door-to-door service the winner and his/her guest would get with his/her own private driver and tour. The winner wouldn’t worry about driving on the opposite side of the road and possibly wrecking the vehicle as one couple did. And the winner wouldn’t have to take a group tour like many Americans do who want to avoid driving. The winner and guest could relax while enjoying the countryside. They would see more because the driver would know the best routes and tours. From what I heard, I sold two and a half times as many tickets during my four-hour shift than the double shift on Friday. Although I had an advantage with my sales background, it was about focusing on the fabulous experience the winner would get. And as a customer, imagine receiving a fantastic customer experience every time you enter a business.
Bounce-Up Momentum Builders
How can a business interaction make you smile?
Have you been part of a business community that makes you happy?
What does a fabulous customer experience look like to you?
Mj Happenings
So very honored that Savio P. Clemente invited me to be in his Authority Magazine’s I Survived Cancer and Here’s How I Did It interview series.
Last week I was part of an amazing panel to celebrate American Business Women’s Day 2021. Live link to come soon.
Until next time, Power-Up, Play-Up, and Bounce-Up™!
Mj
P.S. New program to be announced soon!
