Lisbeth Calandrino::

Miami, FL – Ok, so I love Madonna. I bought three copies of her new CD, Hard Candy, last night. Why, you ask? So I can have one in the car, one at home and one to take on the road. That’s called being a fan.

A month ago when I found out she would be in Miami I decided I had to go see her. I went online and looked for tickets – which, frankly, I found just as annoying as purchasing airline tickets online. So I called my travel agent who found me good cheap tickets and off I went to see Madonna on her "Sticky and Sweet" tour.

When I first saw Madonna years ago, I said I didn’t like her. Secretly, however, I loved her and her music. She was over the edge and it seemed like she made a lot of people nervous.

And then something happened. I came out of the Madonna closet. I followed her career, her children, and even investigated Kabbalah. Whatever you think of her, Madonna is certainly a very complicated  and interesting human being.

The show was supposed to start at 7:30 p.m. but didn’t get going until 10 p.m. It was doubtful that it could have started early — the roads were jammed up and some people told me it took two hours to move 10 miles! She arrived by helicopter promptly at 10 p.m. and left at 12:05 a.m. The trucks were parked outside and the stage was torn down in about 45 minutes.

The show was amazing! I hope I can swing my legs up as high as she can when I’m 50…!  She never seemed out of breath even when her dancers were. Madonna danced for almost two hours straight with a couple of 10 minute breaks, jump-roped and did some complicated dance moves with Justin Timberlake.

They love her in Miami! She’s the hometown girl and she worked it – “I love you Miami, you’re my people." She sang a couple of songs in Spanish and the audience went crazy. The audience was crying and screaming in response to her connection with them. The costumes were beautiful, and so was she. According to Brand Madonna, she has been on more magazine covers than any other star – living or dead!

Madonna is no doubt sexy and outrageous.

The show was fun. It ended with the song Tick Tock, which alludes to environmental issues as well as a tribute to Kabbalah. After the show there were groups of people in the parking lot handing out literature on the organization.

So what does Madonna have to do with your business?

It’s building the brand. It doesn’t matter how you build it you just need to do it—now.

People need to love you, your showroom and your salespeople. Work on it, make it fresh, keep motivating your salespeople and do something fun with your customers. Don't be afraid to be the Chucky Cheese of the industry, no matter how cheesy it sounds.

Keep reinventing yourself; ask your customers what they like. Remember your customers are the keepers of your brand. Are you asking them what they think?

Build your brand by building strong partnerships. The event was sponsored by Blackberry and they handed out blinking blue circular necklaces. The necklaces were great; if you turned around to the audience you could see all the little flashing lights in the bleachers.

Update your brand, don’t let it get stale.

I was interested in the coordination of the event;  unfortunately there were no CDs for sale. I couldn’t believe it! Plenty of high-priced jackets and t-shirts — but only one area to get this stuff. You couldn’t get near it. By the way, beer was $8 and water $6. Oh well.

I also noticed that the bleachers in front of Madonna were empty; I would have filled them first so if Madonna looked out she would think the place was filled. Maybe it was by design.

The next morning I was so stiff I could barely get out of bed and I was hoarse. Dancing and screaming for two hours used to agree with me but I think I got stepped on too many times. Time to get out the tapes and get on the treadmill.

When I'm hungry, I eat. When I'm thirsty, I drink. When I feel like saying something, I say it." – Madonna Ciccone

It’s amazing what you see if you look. I always think I look but it must not be so. Why? Because I’m not always amazed. With that in mind, let me share some amazement.

Recently I traveled to Genoa, Ohio to do some training for a store named Genoa Custom Interiors, owned by Cheryl and David Grosjean.  Here I am, motoring into town in my rented PT Cruiser, looking for some cookies or a pastry to bring to my new friends. Imagine my delight when I see a hot pink sign that says "CAFÉ - homemade desserts!"

Well, I'll just waltz right in and get the best stuff, knowing that my new friends will love the pastry. Hmmmmmmm, as I approach the door I notice a sign in the window advertising "fresh fried perch." I look up again to see if I’m at the right place, and sure enough the pink sign is still there. I hesitantly open the door and sure enough, it’s really a perch place, albeit with a pastry sign. Assuming it’s still a mistake, I approach an uninviting counter and ask for the homemade pastries that I’m sure they have. Not today, the lady says, but perch is on the menu!

I've learned a new lesson today: you can’t tell a sign by its sign.

I imagine the customer who goes there for perch is quite happy, so why not make a big PERCH sign and let us pastry people not waste time on perch and find what we want elsewhere? As I look down the street I’m intrigued by another sign: "A Most Unusual Garden Shop." I look in the windows and I see tables as well as a sign that says “Open for Lunch." I would never have been able to tell it was an eatery based on its marquee and exterior!

It reminds me of the carpet store that sells wood assuming everyone must know that a carpet store carries wood, right?

Wrong.

Your sign is part of your brand and should clearly display what you do.

If you carry laminate, say it. If you carry tile, say it.  Don’t let customers have to figure it out — we’re not that smart.

In Buffalo, NY there are adjoining signs for Destination Motherhood and Casual Male. Who would have thought to put these two stores side-by-side!?

The Chicks from Genoa

So, on with the story.

I get to a sign that says "Interiors," hoping that it’s not another cover for a perch store. I open the door and am promptly greeted by a plethora of well-dressed, smiling women. Before I have a chance to sit down, I’m ushered to their “Custom” shop across the street and am being shown jewelry. Now, I know if I told you to carry jewelry in your flooring store, you'd think, "there's crazy Lis again." Before I can ask why the jewelry, I’m told they simply carry it because they like it and know that most women do! The cabinet is unlocked and I realize the sales trainer — me — is being sold, and liking it! This is my introduction to the women who now comprise the group I affectionately call, the Chicks from Genoa. These are the ones I’m supposed to be training. The Chicks' real names are Cheryl, Sue, Janis, Jan and Rhennon. What wonderful women, and you can tell that Dave, the store owner, likes having them around. They are all very talented, can talk with anyone and just look great. Who would have thought they would be in a little town in Ohio?

As far as training goes, I find these ladies to be smarter than your average salesperson. We promised to be friends forever. I bought some Mary Kay from Rhennon and the girls gave me a lovely gift.

I shouldn’t forget Chris Clark — our other Mohawk rep who seemed to enjoy everything that was going on and didn’t make fun of us. That’s what makes him such a good rep. I also heard he does a great Elvis impersonation.

More Genoa Highlights

It's now off to the Genoa Cruisin’ Car Show, featuring 120 antique and custom cars. This time I drag along Pat Toohey, the Mohawk rep., and have her pose in front of a red 1965 Mustang. This show has free hamburgers and an Elvis impersonator. A good time for any town. Lots of stuff for men but not really enough for women. I probably would have had a massage, haircut, facial, a fashion show and cooking lessons…

Another elegant place of interest is Jan Pugh's store, Packer Creek Pottery. They have great hand-made items and testimonials from all over the world. I was impressed. The testimonials were from royalty as well as commoners like me. The testimonials were placed at eye-level around the store so you could read them. A great idea.

All in all, it has been a great trip. Look around you and notice advertising that works and advertising that doesn't. What are they doing different? Feel free to add your ideas.

I’ll tell you why Walmart is going to take over the world – it’s because they have all the power cords.

I bought a newly-introduced Dell Inspiron Mini 9-inch laptop from QVC three weeks ago. The power cord, which is as small as my black cell phone charger, promptly went missing. It was a Sunday.

My friend J.D. made several calls to all the biggies – Officemax, Radio Shack and Best Buy, all of whom said the computer is too new for them to have the cord. Sure enough, I found the cord on a quick trip to Walmart. It was no big deal to them. How do they get it when the rest of the electronic industry is still trying to catch up? It's because everyone goes there. Today, MSN said if you want to know how the holiday shopping will go, look at the Walmart numbers.

I would prefer to go to Radio Shack or anyone other than Walmart, but the fact is you can count on them for almost anything.  So, while we can’t all be Walmart we can at least pay attention to our customers' needs and stock what’s important to them.

How are you when it comes to keeping in touch with your industry and industry trends?

• Do you subscribe to industry newsletters and magazines? Industry papers have information on product introductions and best practices.
• How do you share the information with your salespeople? Do you circulate the papers and important articles?
• Do you advertise what has value to the customer?
• Do you know what’s valuable to your customers? Do they care what’s new or is it service that your customers really want?
• Do you attend industry conventions to look at products, marketing  and product trends? Surfaces is coming, remember. 
• Are you connected to the blogs related to your industry? Check out TalkFloor for the flooring industry.
• Do you have an alignment with a buying group, distributor or mill? Are you taking advantage of their advertising packages and training?
• Do you find time to network with other retailers, or the Chamber of Commerce?
• Have you spoken with your core customers lately and asked them what you might do to improve your services?
• Do you offer WiFi for your customers if your store is appropriate for it? Even McDonald's is getting in on it!

We can't be "everything" to our customers, but we can at least do what we can.