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Classic Exhibits Distributor Feedback in 2012

December 21st, 2012 Mel White COMMENTS

About two or three times a month, we send “Customer Feedback” emails. On average about 20-30 emails a month, more during February, fewer during July. If you’ve received one, you’ll recognize the subject line:  “Feedback on your recent order | #12345 Sacagawea Portable Hybrid (PM XYZ).”

The request is open-ended, in that it’s not a survey, but a request asking you to tell us what we did right or what we did wrong. When we do something wrong, we try to fix it immediately. When we do something right, we share it.

With the holiday season here, we thought we’d share a few of your positive comments about Classic and our Customer Service team. It’s good for the soul to hear your praise, particularly as one year ends and another begins. Thank you for your feedback, good and bad. It makes us all better.

Feedback on Your Recent Order

1. I just want to let you know that Classic is my preferred vendor. I love the exhibits, the clients are always happy. Bob Beuhl is always, pleasant, helpful and fun! Thank you so much for yet another great experience!

 2. Jeff helped me create an Aero canopy frame based on the dimensions I provided.  A CAD was created for my approval, a simple ‘sign off’ approval was given and your people went to work. We received the item as discussed, with complete set-up instructions and it fits beautifully. Working with Jeff made me realize how difficult Company Z really is to deal with. It’s unusual for us to have a vendor that actually helps and supports us through the project. We always felt like we were bothering the Company Z people. We are extremely happy to be a distributor for Classic Exhibits, top quality products and super customer service. Thank you.

3. It has been a month since that specific order, but as far as I can recall it went rather smoothly. Edie is always on top of the ball and very easy to get a hold of. She is great about returning my e-mails and phone calls promptly. I also really appreciate that if Edie doesn’t know the answer to my question, she is always quick to find out from the resident expert.

4. The job went great…no issues. The client was very happy. Bob did great as usual!

5. Charlie does a good job at responding to my questions and concerns no matter how big or small they might be. I actually like your product and think it makes a good looking booth for how small it can pack down to. Overall you guys have done a great job with my little orders and I look forward to working with Charlie in the future.

6. You guys did a great job on this. I love working with Jeff – he is very responsive, which makes my life way easier. He also rolls with the punches when the client’s ad agency makes last minute changes.

7.  The graphic did, indeed, fit the structure perfectly, although there was some back and forth with Optima about that. I expect the client to be extremely pleased with the unit.  Will send photo of what we did.

8. Charlie has been great to work with on this project and I enjoy working with him. There was an issue with one set of the graphics. It had pen marks on it around the perimeter. I contacted Charlie, but he was out, so Edie and Kevin responded immediately to the problem. They suggested I wash them, which I didn’t really want to do. Instead I learned that dabbing some alcohol on the pen mark, will take it out.

Charlie saw the emails between us regarding the pen marks and immediately followed up with me upon his return. I thought that was nice of him to follow up.

 9. As always we were very pleased with service we received from Edie and Classic. Edie is always helpful, quick with responses and a pleasure to work with. The client was very happy with their new booth. You have an excellent team in place.

10. I don’t have anything specific to say about my most recent job, but I can tell you that I have always received nothing but stellar service from my contacts at Classic. I typically work with Bob Beuhl, but I’ve also worked with Wade West in the past and he has been just as equally attentive and helpful. Sometimes customers can be a real pain, but Bob (and Wade) handled all of my questions and requests with accuracy and were extremely pleasant to work with. Give them raises! 😉

11. Sorry that I can’t give you any specifics other than, “Gee that was easy.” It was a re-order of a previous project that shipped direct to a client show, so I never saw the final piece other than in the photos that Wade sent. Looked good, client is happy, so I am happy!

 12. I wanted to thank both of you, and ask that you extend my thanks to Anne and Wade, for the support we’ve received in the last several quotes. The speed and flexibility we’ve experienced in the estimating process has allowed us to close the orders against some very difficult competition, under some very tight deadlines. Jennifer and Liz are singing your praises.

13. Anne is AWESOME…I love her! Please don’t ever take her away from us!

14. The client was extremely happy with the exhibit property. I was working through an agency, and my contact there was very apprehensive because the show fell during dates that she was out of the country and her client was insistent that they set up themselves – we were both very nervous as the delivery, set up and show opening were all on the same day – no margin for errors. Everything went flawlessly. The client had absolutely no problems figuring out how to set-up the booth themselves – so very user friendly – very happy clients.

15. I enjoy very much working with Anne on projects. She is courteous, patient and knowledgeable. Classic Exhibits and Anne hit the mark on this one. The hardware and graphics arrived on time as promised and she was able to help make our deadline even with a couple changes to the order in the process.

16. I thought Edie was absolutely great!! She was very thorough and helpful and kept her eye on the project all the way through. She is a great asset to your organization.

17. Looks fabulous!! Charlie was awesome as always!

18. Bob and Classic are by far the best! My client loves his booth and has even referred another client that he met at his trade show. Thanks to Classic and Bob, we have another happy client!

In addition, Kevin and I would like to extend our thanks to our Design Team, Mike Swartout and Katina Rigall. Your designs and your work with Classic Distributors make the rest of us look better every single day. And to Production, Accounting, Sales, Purchasing, Web Development, and Customer Service . . . You know you are loved, respected, and admired, even if we don’t say it often enough.

Keep the feedback coming folks. We welcome your comments in 2013 and look forward to an exciting year.

–Mel White and Kevin Carty

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Based in Portland, Oregon, Classic Exhibits Inc. designs and manufacturers portable, modular, and custom-hybrid exhibit solutions and engineered aluminum extrusions (ClassicMODUL). Classic Exhibits products are represented by an extensive distributor network in North America and in select International markets. For more information, contact us at 866-652-2100.

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Delight and Surprise: Word on the Street — July 16th thru July 20th

July 22nd, 2012 Mel White COMMENTS
Delight and Surprise

Word on the Street by Kevin Carty

Over Promise and Under Deliver

We all know the danger of “over-promising and under delivering.” In business, there are few errors that can be more damaging, particularly when trying to attract new customers or launching a new product to existing customers. Then there’s the flip side of “under promising and over delivering” which has its own risks.

Over hyping a program or product can kill it if the deliverables don’t match the pre-hype. That’s not to say that promoting a new product or service is not critical. It clearly is! But at a minimum, there needs to be as  much effort in the “frosting,” i.e., the experience of receiving the product or service. I would argue that the “end experience” is the most critical experience.

Let’s look at something near and dear to me — Apple. I’ll admit it. I’ve drunk the Kool-aid and have been an Apple Fan Club member since May 2010. For years I fought it, accusing Apple of being just a marketing machine. Nothing more. Something the “cool kids” had to have to be “ccol” for those who bought into the Apple hype.

I Took the Bait

When i received my Macbook Pro in the mail, I took it home, opened it, and begin the set-up process. That’s where the “delight and surprise” began. Mind you, I already was a “win” for the Apple marketing machine. I bought the laptop. Victory for them right? Yes and No, but I would argue Not Yet. The “Yes” came next.

When I tore the packing tape off the plain brown corrugated shipping box and peered inside, the packaging was amazing. Well thought out, clean, everything had a place and was in its place. It was COOL. But again, the victory, while building, was not quite complete.

After removing the Macbook Pro from the box, the real victory materialized. I plugged in my shinny new laptop via a magnetic plug. What a great concept, especially for someone with two five year olds racing around who trip over things like cords. The cord wouldn’t get damaged (or do any damage to a five year old). Genius.

Them I hit the power button. Being a PC user for the prior 16 years, I was prepared for an agonizing 4-6 hours of set up and install. But something very strange happened. My Macbook Pro began to set itself up — literally! It was the definition of “intuitive.” By the time I was done, I looked at the clock and realized that it had only taken (1) hour from start to finish, migration time for email included

Back to my point. Here was a marketing machine that not only exceeded expectations, but “Surprised and Delighted” this new user!

There are millions of great products and services. We all yearn to design, sell, or own them. But, and this is the important “but,” there are far fewer with great user experiences. For example, who wants to buy a beautiful 20 x 30 island like the one featured in Design Monday this week and then receive a box of metal with some unintelligible set-up instructions. Nothing will spoil the buying process more. After all, your client just spent thousands of dollars on the booth space, the exhibit, and all the show services. They expect a perfect exhibit and a positive exhibit experience, as they should. But we need to surprise them as well and leave a lasting impression. At Classic, we hope we do just that, which is why we are always asking you in phone calls, in Customer Feedback emails, and in this blog, “Was your customer ‘Surprised and Delighted?'”

How do you accomplish that in your business? How do you make the “End Experience” as delightful as everything that precedes it? What’s the “frosting” that turns a mere cake into a party? Please share your secret with the other Classic Exhibits community.

STARTING TODAY, let’s change the tired “Over Promise, Under Promise” cliches into something more meaningful — “Make a Promise and Over Deliver!” True, it’s not as catchy, but it’s a real goal with real outcomes.

Be well!

–Kevin Carty
http://twitter.com/kevin_carty
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/kevin-carty/3/800/32a

 

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Word on the Street — December 27th thru December 31st

January 2nd, 2011 Mel White COMMENTS
2011 Trade Show Predictions

Word on the Street by Kevin Carty

Out with the Old and In with the New

This past week was filled with a flurry of new (albeit last minute) orders and lots of quote requests for the New Year. It was a promising sign heading into 2011.

Around Classic, talk was about what to expect in the first quarter of 2011 . . . internally and externally.

Mel and I have been in full blown planning mode for the past eight weeks, and this past week was no different. We have many things on tap for 2011, especially the first quarter. Along with the recent launching of the new SEGUE Sunrise, we are launching new variations of existing systems as well as multiple Island exhibits that reflect current “minimalist” trends and the growth of silicone edge graphics.

Along with that, we are refining our internal “customer experience.” Some examples include setting better expectations to make the overall process more predictable. The advent of tighter time lines, which have become the new “norm,” bring new challenges to our process. I am personally addressing many of these not only for you but also for our internal Project Management and Production Departments.

Pricing will receive some attention in the first quarter of 2011 as well. As many of you have probably seen in the financial markets, aluminum and plastic prices have slowly been on the rise. Does this mean an increase is pending from Classic Exhibits and ClassicMODUL? Yes in part, but we have been looking at more creative buying practices to control costs, so it will not be an across the board price increase. You will actually see some price decreases as well.

In the next few weeks, I will publish my Annual Company Letter. I am currently working on it and do not know the exact release date, but it will be in January.

I hope you and your families had a safe and happy New Year’s celebration. Be well.

–Kevin Carty

http://twitter.com/kevin_carty
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/kevin-carty/3/800/32a

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Word on the Street — November 1st thru November 5th

November 7th, 2010 Mel White 1 COMMENT
Why we participate in the TS2 Show

Word on the Street by Kevin Carty

Our People / Our Success

Many of you, who have been distributors, vendor partners, and industry friends for many years, have heard us speak about how the “heart and soul” of Classic Exhibits is its people. They are the key to our success.

To be successful in this business, we have to have attractive designs, quality products, and advanced manufacturing capabilities, but at the end of the day, its our people that make Classic a truly remarkable and great company. So please indulge me today as I share some information and some praise about our people.

Customer Service / Project Management

To most of you, they are the voice of Classic. This uniquely talented group is responsible for handling all quotes, order details, and job folders for our Production team. Unlike other companies where Customer Service representatives have very narrow duties  and authority, the Project Managers at Classic are tasked with broad responsibilities. They are expected to answer your product-related questions, complete CAD details for orders, arrange shipping, and function as the final quality control check on your jobs.

To be a PM at Classic takes a very unique skill set. They have to be detail-oriented, efficient, imaginative, and charming. Very few of us have two of these characteristics, let alone all four. Classic PM’s are your “internal advocate,”  or more specifically your “eyes and ears” throughout the entire process from the moment an order is turned over to Production until it leaves our shipping dock.

I am proud of how our group works as a team. They are always on the alert for ways to improve internal processes which not only makes their jobs more efficient, but also improves our ability to serve your requests.

Design Department

Design is often the first point of contact for many of you. Most of our competitors funnel everyone into Customer Service first. We don’t, which can present a challenge for our Designers. At Classic, we urge you to start with the Design Department on any orders that are not “as is” kits. As a result, a Designer at Classic might be working on 12-15 projects during a week. Your expectations, and the expectations of your client, are that  each project will be unique and creative. And that the project will be delivered in 2-5 days (depending on size and scope).

After reading what I just wrote . . . that challenge can seem almost impossible on some weeks. But to their credit, they do it and they do it very well.

On top of all that, the Design Department must balance the demands of the Marketing Department as well. Design Monday, new kit renderings, animations, rental requests, and a wide variety of other design-related assignments are handled by Design. There is rarely, if ever, any down time in Design.

Production

I have often said and will continue to say that we have the absolute best Production staff anywhere. In these days of short turn times and client-driven last minute changes and unique challenges, they find a way to make it happen day in and day out. As a crew, they are continually striving to learn new techniques and cross train each other so we can remain efficient and profitable.

The vast majority of our Production staff has or will be celebrating ten plus years with the company. As a group, they care about Classic, and they care about the products our customers receive. They are faced with enormous challenges every single day, challenges that push them to engineer new solutions and develop new methods to handle our diverse product line. On any given day they are asked to solve difficult custom solutions, and to retain that knowledge so it can be replicated it in a week, a month, or in two years.

For those distributors and suppliers who have visited Classic Exhibits, you know. You have commented on our manufacturing capabilities, on our work ethic, on the positive energy of our Production team, and on the organization and cleanliness of our facility. I am proud of them and encourage more of our distributors to visit us and see what we see every day.

Accounting, Purchasing, Shipping, and Inventory Control

They pay the bills, pay the people, purchase the supplies, and keep us organized. They are the folks behind the scenes who rarely get “Top Billing” or much recognition outside of Classic Exhibits.  But you know, as well as we do, that they are the glue that keeps us from falling apart.

Just like our Production team, these folks have been with Classic Exhibits for many years, and as Classic has grown and as we have added divisions over the years, they have been asked to do more and to keep us organized. We are fortunate to have employees in these positions who are smart, resourceful, and team players.

I often hear from colleagues who tell me that their Accounting, Purchasing, or Shipping Departments make their lives miserable. Rather than working with their colleagues, they create mini-fiefdoms within the organization. I can’t relate. At Classic, our team works hard to keep us on task and to follow procedures, but it’s never with an “us vs. them” mentality. It’s about making Classic better.

At the end of the day, there’s no substitute for a dedicated team of employees. Yes, we all want to get paid, but it should be about more than just the paycheck. At Classic, our team comes in everyday ready to work and always with an eye on how to make the company better and our customers happier. For that I am grateful every single day.

Be well and have a wonderful weekend!

–Kevin Carty

http://twitter.com/kevin_carty
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/kevin-carty/3/800/32a

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Word on the Street — September 26th thru October 1st

October 3rd, 2010 Mel White COMMENTS
Why we participate in the TS2 Show

Word on the Street by Kevin Carty

Survey Results and Responses — Part 2 of 2

Once again, thank you for participating in our recent survey. This week, I’d like to share some of the numbers from the survey in addition to answering many of your comments and questions.

Quantitative Data

“How would you rate the response time from Classic Exhibits (compared to competitors)?”

Much Faster 16.0%
Somewhat Faster 33.3%
Comparable 35.6%

“How would you rate the overall customer service from Classic Exhibits (compared to competitors)?”

Much Faster 13.7%
Somewhat Faster 43.6%
Comparable 34.4%

If we weren’t Classic, we would view these numbers as positive since you rated us 85% and 91% Faster or Comparable to our competitors. But given our history of consistently responding faster than our competitors, the 35% Comparable numbers are troubling. I’ll respond specifically to this a little later in the blog since we received a comment on this topic.

“How often do you visit the Classic Exhibits website?”

Several times a week 56.3%
Once a month 28.7%
Once a year 1.1%

These numbers are encouraging and gratifying since we’ve devoted considerable time, effort, and money to our website over the past five years. When you visit our website, you told us you use the following features most often:

  1. Exhibit Design Search
  2. Product Pages
  3. Rental Displays
  4. Trade Show Tales Blog
  5. Past 5 Days
  6. Exhibit Specials

On a follow up question, we asked, “Which features of Exhibit Design Search do you use? Check all that apply.” Again, in order, you said:

  1. Photos
  2. Filter and Sort
  3. Design Details
  4. Additional Images
  5. Email Designs
  6. My Gallery
  7. Product Videos (when available)

Finally, in the response to the question, “How would you rate Classic Exhibits on the following?”, you rated us Excellent or Above Average on these (with the corresponding percentage):

  • Ease of Purchase — 77%
  • Manufacturing Flexibility — 76%
  • Setup Instructions — 82%
  • Cases and Packaging — 85%
  • Product Quality — 86%
  • Exhibit Designs — 84%
  • Distributor Communication — 76%
  • Marketing — 82%

Comments and Responses from the Survey

Classic has long been the fastest at getting quotes, orders, and designs turned around as it relates to the industry as a whole. In the past few months this has slipped a little. Why?

Answer — Let me start off by saying that this is not something that we like to hear. However, it is also a reality, and it is by no means the fault of any one PM or Designer. Rather, it is quite simply due to market conditions. We (Classic) do not have as many people working in those departments as we did two years ago. And that is not an excuse, but from a transparency standpoint, we want to be honest with you.

Our PM’s and Designers are doing as many quotes and designs as always, but the orders are smaller than they were 24 months ago. Therefore, you have fewer people trying to do more. Having said that, we need to set more reasonable expectations on turnaround times. Over promising and under delivering is never a good thing. We realize that. And as a management team, we are addressing it.

Can your Design Team and Project Management Team communicate better at the “hand-off” stage? Meaning when a design is sent to Project Management for quoting?

Answer — While this was not an overriding theme in your survey responses, it was mentioned and deserves a response. Communication has been a consistent theme at Classic over the past four years, both internally and externally. Hearing that we are failing with some of our distributors is troublesome. Some of it may be a direct reflection of asking fewer people to do more. I know that occasionally causes people to cut corners to meet existing time expectations. However, when proper communication does not happen, it causes us to go back and forth more often which lengthens the turnaround time. I promise you that we are working on this, and we will get better.

Can you include Distributor News and Updates in Design Monday along with new designs?

Answer — Yes. And to some extent we already do. Several years ago, we discontinued our monthly newsletter because we felt we were inundating you with email broadcasts. Instead, we shifted those routine updates on products, services, and specials to periodic emails, Design Monday (via “Word on the Street”) and postings in the Trade Show Tales Blog. Please let us know if you would like us to resume the monthly newsletter. In the newsletter, we would be very happy to discuss Classic updates as well as information in your world — whether it is new hires, current projects that you wish to share, or other pertinent news as it relates to the industry within your local markets.

Classic needs to do a better job of Customer Appreciation and Acknowledgment.

Answer — Ouch! That really hurts. While I feel like we do a good job of this “on the fly,” for the most part, I do agree that we need to do this more publicly. And more often. Our management team will make this a focus moving forward. You are our lifeblood. No one can deny that, and I am sorry if we have not done a good job of acknowledging that daily, monthly and quarterly.

ClassicMODUL is great. The variety of extrusions and accessories are unmatched. Why do you not promote the variety more in your Classic Exhibits designs and broadcasts?

Answer — At first I thought this comment may have come from Tom Jones, who manages our ClassicMODUL division. 😉 But it didn’t. I spent a lot of time thinking about this. In looking through past Design Mondays and other e-broadcasts that the Classic Exhibits division has sent over the past several months, it is clear that while we use a variety of extrusions and accessories in our broadcasts, we do not always “highlight” them. Recently, we have been promoting the TSP profiles which hold Silicone Edge Graphics, but we do need to do a better job of describing the extrusions in particular designs so that you gain a deeper and better sense of what is available from Classic and ClassicMODUL. Great suggestion. Thanks!

In conclusion, we have work to do and some issues to resolve. Thank you for your feedback, and we sincerely appreciate your constructive criticism.

And thank you for the many, many kudos we received as well in the survey (which we elected not to share). I am not going to lie, hearing that “Classic Rocks!,” that the “Customer Service Team is Wonderful” and that you appreciate coming to work each day knowing that you get to “Work with friends,” makes me not just happy, but exceptionally proud of our team.

Thanks again!

–Kevin Carty

http://twitter.com/kevin_carty
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/kevin-carty/3/800/32a

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