Seth Godin's lemonade stand reminds me of lawnmowing
I read Seth Godin's recent blog entry about two lemonade stands and it reminded me of a story I heard years ago that I still love.
A little boy walks into a five and dime store and asks to use the phone. He calls one of his neighbors. "I wanted to know if I could cut your grass," he says.
"No, thank you, I already have a boy who cuts my lawn," comes the reply.
"I'll catch all the grass clippings and sweep the sidewalk, too."
"Well, I appreciate your enthusiasm, son, but I already have a boy who cuts my lawn," says the man.
"Whatever he charges you, I'll charge you half price. Now can I cut your lawn?"
"The boy I have now does a fine job but thank you very much, anyway. Okay, bye now." And the man hangs up. The store owner has been listening to the boy on the phone. "All that and you still didn't get the business, huh?"
"Oh, no," says the boy, "he's already my customer. I was just making sure he's happy."
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I love that story. May we all work to create those kinds of customer experiences!