It’s About the Little Details, in Life and in Marketing

Generally in life we think about the big picture. We set big goals. We make big plans. We look toward the end result. We plan entire events.

But without all the little details none of those big pictures would amount to anything.

Think about it. Relatively speaking from our vantage point the stars are small. But without all of those small points of light up in the night sky it wouldn’t be nearly as beautiful.

During a wedding, which can take months to plan and make happen, little things like the rings and the happy tears of the bride are actually what makes it a wonderful event.

This is true in both life and in business.

When we are marketing our business there is usually a lot of talk about what we want the result to be. Why are we running this campaign? Why are we doing that particular mailing? What is the reason for the sale and what do we want to happen?

But without all of the little details nothing gets done.

And remembering the little details can make all the difference to help you make your big picture come together.

For example I know of a local coffee shop that specializes in the little details. Their big picture is they are a local business trying to get new customers in the door each day and and keep the ones that do come in coming back.

They do that with the little details. Things like only using bananas in their smoothies that are just ripe enough. To the point that once they are not “just right” they do not use them.

Things like putting a little drink umbrella in each smoothie.

Things like saying Aloha (hello in Hawaiian) to EVERY person that walks through the door and Mahalo (thank you in Hawaiian) to EVERY person as they leave. Whether they are a regular or someone who has never been through their doors before. Everyone is welcomed and greeted, everytime.

It feels like you are coming in to see friends, like you are welcome and invited in. This keeps people coming back time after time.

If you are holding a live event again you need to make sure you greet EVERYONE that comes in the door. It it is a large event, bring in extra friends or family to help if need be.

I attend a lot of workshops and seminars throughout the year. And there is a distinct difference between some of them. There is one person who makes it a point to look to the details. You always feel like you are “home” when you go. People welcome you. Hugs are normal. Candies on the tables and ice water is readily available.

There was another one that I attended just recently, which really brought home the difference.

It was quite a bit smaller that the other ones. It was held by someone in my local community. And by the end of the day all was good. But I was a bit concerned when we got started. When we first arrived people were already sitting down and when we walked in no one said anything (including the persentor, who was there). I noticed a clip board with a bunch of hand written information on it, that I determined was a sign in form. But there was nothing that told me that.

So we signed in and quietly went and found a seat. It was quiet as a library and no one was talking.

The next person who came in happened to notice that there was bags of “stuff” in a box by the clip board. They peaked in the bags and the presenter noticed and told them to go ahead and take one. That everyone should have one.

No one told us that…

So we got up and went over and got a bag of goodies. It turned out that it included the book for the days training.

Now once everything got started the training was very good. They provided lunch and everyone eventually relaxed enough to start talking and networking. But the initial entrance was very uncomfortable.

Something little like an assistant to greet people as they came in and help them get settled and maybe even introduce them to one or two of the other people already in the room would have made a world of difference in the feeling of the event. And therefore a difference in the feeling of success.

So while it is good to see “the big picture” don’t over look the little details. It’s the little details that make or break an event. And it is the little details in both life and business that make things great.