The $40 Plate

I am a sucker for good marketing. About a year ago, I purchased a customized story book for my niece from http://www.iseeme.com/. The book spells out my niece's name, one letter per page, and each page features a garden fairy whose name begins with that page's letter. Absolutely adorable. (They have a version for boys -- or girls -- that uses animals instead of fairies.) At the end of the book is a glossary with all the fairies, A to Z.

From time to time, the company emails me discounts and promotions, but a few weeks ago, they emailed me something that really got my attention. The subject line read: "Celebrate Heather Allen's name with every meal." I opened the email and there was an image of a plate with fairies all around the border and Heather's name and birthday in the middle. (That's not really my niece's name but I didn't want to broadcast her name and birthday for the world to see.)

I thought it was a perfect addition to the book we bought her so I promptly ordered it. And yes, when all was said and done, it cost about $40. Forty bucks for a plate that will cradle mac and cheese. But TOTALLY worth it.

Comcast takes its whacks on service - USATODAY.com

Comcast has a reputation. Probably not the one they were hoping for, either. Among other social organizing functions that the web serves, the Internet allows consumers to pool their voices. One person shouting? Maybe Comcast can ignore that. Try thousands shouting all at once, loudly enough to get the attention of the press.

One blogger took the matter of Comcast's poor service into his own hands and gave people an outlet to publish their own stories. I shared this article with my husband; to say that we have had issues with Comcast is a gross, gross, gross understatement. I lost count of service calls around Trip # 15. (The folks on the phone are very pleasant and as helpful as they can be but Comcast's system does not allow them to do much.)

Good customer service has always mattered. Bad service can spread like a wildfire with today's technology. Read more:

Comcast takes its whacks on service - USATODAY.com