Disney, where I am this week, has a concept called a Moment of Truth. A moment of truth is “any time a guest comes into contact with any aspect of a business, however remote, is an opportunity to form an impression.” Note that it’s “an impression.” It can be good; it can be bad.

Why “guest?” Because guest is much more hospitable than “customer.” What “experience?” Because experience covers so much more than “service.” Service is important, but there are many other parts of the experience than just that.

Can you see how that opens up the game? Can you see how this position, this mindset gives you so much more to work with? Let’s just walk through it a bit, using a few examples: a hotel and then a small publishing company.

Guest Experience for a Hotel

Let’s break out the different phases of a hotel experience:

• Prospecting – guest wants a place to stay.
• Research – guest compares information for selection.
• Purchase – guest pays for a room.
• Arrival – guest reaches the facility.
• Checkin – guest secures room.
• Entry – guest steps into the room.
• Inhabitation – guest’s stay at the facility.
• Error handling – anything that goes wrong.
• Checkout – guest leaves the facility.
• Aftermath – any contact with guest thereafter.

That’s pretty much all of it, right? Now, how many ways could you brainstorm to make this better, if I put you in charge of guest experience design?

You’d start at prospecting, of course, because this is where you’d find new ways to share with your guest why you’re the right choice. You’d use listening tools to find potential guests talking about traveling to the locale where you have a hotel. You’d think of ways to make that prospecting experience better.

Walking through it, you can just see it. How would you improve the guest’s experience at check-in? What could you do to improve the “inhabitation” stage? What else?

It feels obvious. But is that just me?

Guest Experience for a Publisher

Again, let’s break down the components of the experience.

• Prospecting – guest wants information/content.
• Research – guest investigates possible sources.
• Purchase – guest pays for products (services?)
• Consumption – guest absorbs the information.
• Aftermath – any contact with guest thereafter.

Now, with publishing, depending on what kind it is, might have more than one kind of “guest.” If it’s a magazine, advertising sales might be another kind of guest experience. Finding authors/creators is another type of guest experience. We’d have to add other components. But you can do that without me having to type it all.

What could you do to design a better “purchase” experience, for instance? We sell magazines as annual subscriptions, and we sell books as a single unit purchase. Why couldn’t someone subscribe to a book? What would that experience be like?

The Method Is What We’re Taught to Pursue

We learn our times tables. We learn the 50 states (in the US, at least). We are taught all these rules, these patterns, these systems, these methods. Musicians learn their scales. Painters copy the Masters. Copy. Learn. Make patterns.

Repetition. Finding grooves. Fitting into our assembly lines. Aligning to the way we understand how to measure.

Method. The process by which we get somewhere. Kempo karate is a method of fighting. Kicking the other guy’s ass is the goal.

You see this, right?

“New” is Rarely a Byproduct of Repetition

Except when it is. iPod was a whole new way of framing the music story: 1000 songs (not megabytes and gigabytes). iTunes store not just an orphaned player. Wheel and single button, not a slew of buttons.

And the Nano is the baby of the original, but the iPhone is nothing like the original, except they removed the wheel and left only one button. New. Again.

Now, repetition isn’t the only facet of method, and method isn’t bad. I need to be clear about that. But focusing on perfecting one’s method isn’t as useful as focusing on solving for the goal.

Pursue the Goal, Not the Method

I addressed the International Association of Business Communicators at the Uptown Theater in Kansas City, a painted lady teetering between demolition and emotional buttressing. The room was, as it always is, filled with that mix of the converted, the confused, the naysayers, the proof (that it all works), and me. Me, the street preacher, the jester, the irreverent, the addle-brained and yet target-minded sayer of what everyone swears they already know and blogs that they’ve seen it all before. Common sense. Be human. Be real.

I imagine some of them at their desk today, looking at their monitor, digging into their email, looking at their stats, settling back into the warm cottony folds of what they know how to do, what they were taught to do, what they practiced and repeated and did again and again. Trenchwork, some of it. And some of them are damned pleased and okay to be pleased by performing it.

But some of my people, some of those who saw something, felt the sparkle, caught a whiff of what I’m cooking, they got what I was saying. Old roads have precious little to do with new paths. What came before doesn’t have to explain what should be done next. We don’t have to repeat repeat repeat repeat.

I read once that every cell in our body completely recycles every four days. Perhaps I have it wrong, but when I think of that, I’m caught. I wonder why my scar from cutting my left ring finger while pulling a fern out of the ground during a Boy Scout survival weekend still persists. I wonder why I still have cowlicks in my hair. If every cell is new again, why can’t I be someone else every four days? But this is a side thought. This is a distraction for you to ponder. Scientists need not apply: I’m a disciple of accepting mystery instead of seeking truth. (Delusional, maybe, but pleasantly surprised? Yes.)

Methods change. It’s not that you shouldn’t learn methods, but rather that you should be ready to switch methods by facing the goals.

And Here At the End, The Goal

You will do so much more with your pursuits should you become a pursuer of the goal, and not a student of the method. Okay, SOME of you will. Others, you need the repetition, the ritual, the comfort. That is so very okay. Religion is all that. Okay, most religion is all that. Most religion is the method.

Seek the goal. The goal is equipping people. The goal is satisfying need. The goal is seeking to better others. The goal is to provide. The goal is to make everything work better.

See how that works? Think about your goals. Think about your company’s goals. What if you threw out EVERY method you were using before this very moment? The goals would still be there.

What if you left email behind and used ONLY voice? Could you still reach your goal? What if I stopped blogging and only sent you emails? What if we all shut our computers off? (Not sure we could ever get that genie back into the bottle.) What if we switched to mobile-centric design?

Goals. Not. Methods.

And you said…

Photo credit Dru Bloomfield

Is your negative commentary helping them make a buying decision? I’ve rarely seen the tactic work in traditional advertising. You can graze them a little bit. For instance, I’m a bit fond of the GM commercials where they point out that they have better mileage than other cars that seem to get credit for good mileage. That’s a kind of gentle sleight.

But if you’re spending your time crapping on others in your space, I’m curious how you think that will translate to a win for you.

You read a lot of blogs. What do you think?

Photo credit Josh Liba

Can’t see the video? Click here.

Direct link to the video

“Lucky” is absolutely what I am. Here’s what I do to earn my luck:

• Write a blog post or two a day.
• Write a newsletter every week.
• Comment and connect with others daily.
• Answer and send hundreds of emails daily.
• Read voraciously.
• Work with the best clients I can find.
• Reach into new markets weekly.
• Travel extensively.

Seems lucky to me.

People always ask which camera I used to shoot my video. I use the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3 (that’s a review of the camera).

Here they are:

• Favorite copywriting and marketing books?
• Third Tribe Blogroll?
• 2 Days In – What the Third Tribe has done for me and my blog!
• Many thanks from T3’s self-appointed novice, newbie beginner (redundancy intended)
• Recommend a hosting service?
• To-do/ organizing software
• Good Theme for Beginngers or more
• 3 Free Kick-Ass Workbooks
• Future in person meetups – London
• What’s your biggest sales page pet peeve?
• Mindmapping to keep organized [free software]

So, it’s stuff you would normally be talking about. Only, we share how we’re using these things for our business, and how we’re helping companies (or ourselves) navigate it all.

That’s what’s going on at Third Tribe Marketing. It’s not a social community. It’s a learning community. The people there have paid to participate in conversations that will help them learn and do more for their pursuits. Brian would say they’re there for the tutorials and the media content, but I’m there for the forums.

Want to check it out? The information on joining is here.

If you’re not into it, no worries. You might not be a marketer. You might not do lots of your work online. There are lots of reasons not to join. It’s okay. This blog is still here and still going strong. : )

Today’s your day. You’re up. I’d love for you to leave just a small comment and say hi.

Now, given that 45,000 people get this blog sent to them daily, and that another 170,000 people swing by the site at least once every month, and given that I’m good for usually 20 or so comments a post, that means that this post, if you play along, should receive something like 44,980 comments.

But really, I just wanted to hear from you. Say hi? You, the long-time reader and consumer of all things here. Just say hi.

For everyone else, my wonderful friends who give me more than I give you when you comment here, thank you. I’m grateful for your contributions to my madness. You matter.

Let’s all greet the new folks. Shall we?

If you can’t see the video, click here

Direct link to the video

Forbes says I’m one of the Web Celeb 25. I’m grateful. But what do you do with that?

So, because I’m awkward, I’ll just say, “Thanks, Forbes.”

Having an email address is great. Publishing a phone number is great. Being able to reach me on Twitter or Facebook is wonderful.

But I’m finding such value in the use of our contact forms. We are getting work from them, and it’s paying off.

Note: the forms are SIMPLE. If you look at my contact form, you’ll see how simple:

I don’t want every little detail from you. I don’t need you to prequalify yourself as a paying lead. I’m just asking for basics. Heck, we only ask for 3 things total at the New Marketing Labs form.

Are you making it easy for people to connect?

photo hosted on flickr

What Third Tribe is About

It all started because of something Seth Godin said to Brian Clark (copyblogger) about marketing. Brian had written about an internet marketer type (the yellow highlighter kind) and Seth had asked which side of that kind of marketing Brian was on, as if there were two tribes: touchy feely on one side and harsh yellow highlighter on the other. Brian’s response was that he was in neither camp, and that’s where the basic seed of “third tribe” came from.

We chatted about it on the phone, and then Brian checked in with Darren Rowse (problogger), and then we all conferred with Sonia Simone (remarkable communications), and the idea came about to offer a private membership forum and information/education place to share openly about internet marketing strategies, tactics, and ideas.

That’s basically what we talk about inside the third tribe site.

(Oh, for those of you who just want to know how much, we’re doing an introductory rate of $27 USD a month for charter members, which will be your price if you buy it before Friday, February 5th [around 6PM CT]. After that, it goes up to $47 USD a month.) Want some?

Not For Everyone

What we’re covering in there is basically the “how you can do better internet marketing” stuff. It’s not about affiliate marketing per se. It’s not about “make money online” stuff per se, though some of the third tribers talk about that. But it’s definitely a place to learn and talk about what we’ve figured out works in the internet marketing place.

Because of who’s there, there are all kinds of perspectives. Darren makes his money one way. Brian does it a totally different way. Me? I’m even more different than both of them, and so we’re also learning from each other through this sharing process.

It might not be for you, and that’s just fine.

Who Else is There?

We’ve already got some great folks you might know like John Jantsch, Leo Babauta, Pam Slim, Naomi Dunford, Johnny Truant, Chris Garrett, Dave Navarro, Jonathan Fields, Hugh MacLeod, Laura Roeder, Mark McGuinness, Chris Pearson, Aaron Wall, and there are more that I’m probably missing.

Again, this stuff’s about marketing and what’s worked for us and what hasn’t. It’s been fun hearing from people in the forums sections, and I’m learning every bit as much as I’m sharing. That’s what I’m enjoying the most so far: the interactions. Yeah, there’s all this educational content that’s hopefully useful, including audio programs, worksheets, things like that. But me personally? I’m really digging the interactions in the forums.

If This Sound Good to You

I’m pretty happy about this project. I like working with Brian and Darren and Sonia, and I’m loving what I’m learning from the other folks who’ve already started in on the forums. If you want to talk privately about internet marketing and what we’re finding that works and what doesn’t, then consider joining the Third Tribe. If not, don’t worry. I’m still doing my thing here at [chrisbrogan.com].

How This Fits With Everything Else I Do

I’m still happily the president of New Marketing Labs. I’m still writing here at [chrisbrogan.com]. I’m still doing the stuff I’m doing. This was just a way to offer some ideas, insights, and interaction with people who wanted to get deep into online marketing. And no, this isn’t the education project I talked about in my newsletter. That’s still forthcoming.

For the Naysayers

Any time I talk about money, I get a bunch of emails telling me that I’ve jumped the shark or that I’m a sellout. I did when we published Trust Agents. I did when I took my first affiliate ad for Thesis. I’ll just say my part about this up front, and you can blog whatever about it elsewhere.

The reason for building a membership forum site is that we can share information that we use for our businesses. It’s not what we want to post on our blogs. It’s something people are paying to learn and hopefully use for their own business efforts, and because of that, we think it’s of value. Don’t want it? Don’t buy it. I do plenty for free, and that’s still useful, too.

It’s not for everyone. It’s for those who want to step up their online marketing game.

Get On Board

The Third Tribe Marketing site is a paid membership site. If you sign up before February 5th at 6PM (Central Time – GMT -6), the cost is $27 USD a month. If you sign up next week, the cost jumps to $47 a month. The early bird and all that.

I hope you join. I’m really excited about what’s going on there. Frankly, I haven’t been active on any kind of message board/forum in a long while, and it was kind of fun to revisit the feeling of threaded forum conversations where everyone’s voice matters.

Check out Third Tribe Marketing.