Scott Sanfilippo's Blog

I sat watching an older couple at dinner the other night. There was no particular reason for my gawking, they were just there, I was kind of bored and at the end of their meal they provided fodder for today’s musings. “I’ll have a regular and she’ll have a decaf.”… Read More "“The Sugar Entitlement.” Or, “No Thanks, I Have Some at Home.”"

While digging through my wallet today I found one of those punch cards from Burger King. Nine more punches and I get a free Whopper. I don’t really like Burger King, but for some reason I’m still carrying this thing around with me from God knows when. It’s the little… Read More "“Burger King & Martini’s.” Or, “Something About Customer Loyalty.”"

Jack Benny was always 39. When he died at age 80, he was still 39. I’ve always been told you never ask a woman her age. What is so taboo about the number of years we’ve been alive? I had dinner with a friend last night and the inevitable question… Read More "“Pray to Aphrodite! Pray!” Or, “What’s Up With the Age Question?”"

In the last ten minutes, I’ve heard crickets chirping, horns blowing, bells going “ding” and other assorted nonsense. Like one of Pavlov’s dogs, each unique sound resulted in me stopping what I was in the middle of doing and react. Answer the phone. Respond to a text message. Tell someone… Read More "“Wow, What a Great Sandwich.” Or, “How Technology Kills Productivity”"

Here’s the part when people will say, “Yeah Scott, go ahead, rub it in.” I just returned from a ten day cruise on the six-star luxury ship, Seven Seas Navigator, which is part of the Regent Seven Seas Cruises line. With only 450 guests, the ship is not the largest… Read More "“Life’s Journeys.” Or, “A Photographic Look at Life an Island at a Time.”"

For as much as I like Apple, I hold a certain disdain for their retail stores. I’m sure you have experienced the overcrowded, over heated, wall-to-wall people atmosphere inside an Apple Store. Like a meat market, you need to take a number to be served, then wait upwards of a… Read More "“One Bad Apple (Store Employee).” Or, “Why Customer Service Matters.”"

On a weekly report I got this morning, the word “churn” came up several times. Sorry Paula Deen fans, we’re not making our own sweet cream butter here, we’re talking about “churn” as in loss of customers. In business it’s one of the seven words you never want to hear… Read More "“eCommerce. Are You In It To Win It?” Or, “Churn, Baby, Churn.”"

There was something awfully familiar about some Facebook and Twitter posts I’ve seen from a few businesses in the Scranton / Wilkes-Barre, PA area. They weren’t just familiar, they were exactly the same. Word for word, picture for picture, the only thing different was the company name. At first I… Read More "“It’s Time to Fire Your Social Media Management Company.” Or, “Man, What a Mess!”"

It’s just about time for your company Christmas party. Whoops, sorry. I must be politically correct and bow down to the establishment for just a second. It’s just about time for the End of the Year Celebration sponsored by your company. No matter where you work, the stories from these… Read More "“5 Simple Rules for Company Christmas Parties.” Or, How Not to be the Next Jerry Penacoli”"

Utilities. Love ’em or hate ’em, we gotta have ’em. Having a relationship with the cable, water, gas, telephone and electric companies is like being in a bad marriage that even a divorce can’t help. They all boast about awards they receive for customer service, but I have rarely witnessed… Read More "“@ComcastCares.” Or, “CableCard Hell.”"