Did your dad or uncle ever offer to pinch your arm so your stubbed big toe would not hurt any more? Yeah, that’s just flippin’ hilarious when you are suffering with acute toe-pain, right? That ancient paternal diversionary tactic is not even marginally effective and just leaves you hurting in two spots.
Not a big fan of that one, but we did, however, discover a psychological head-fake that works, and thought you design professionals may find it useful…..
Do you have a client who is a little lean in the pocketbook and languishing in the interior design doldrums? Her home desperately needs your touch, and she would love nothing more than to hire you, but she says she just can’t quite afford it until her financial portfolio recovers. What do you do? Direct her to this website. After a few minutes she will look up from the computer screen feeling significantly better about her surroundings. This temporary illusion is the perfect weapon for todays interior designer because your client will be eternally grateful that you helped her through a difficult time, fostering goodwill and consumer loyalty, and it buys a little time till she is ready to cut checks again!
If you find that after the economy recovers that she is still nervous and reluctant to spend, simply direct her to this website. This should reverse the effects, reminding her how badly she needs you, and have her spending with excessive abandon again in no time.
Baseball fans are a notoriously superstitious bunch.
I don’t consider myself superstitious, but am definitely a baseball fan, and on November 7th 2001 at game 7 of the World Series when I spilled soda on the guy in front of me…..I was not taking any chances! I went right to the pro shop and bought him a new shirt…..The Diam0ndbacks proceeded to win the World Series, and the guy in front of me just happened to be a big-time designer and has spent over a million dollars on Helser Brothers drapery hardware….Ok, I made up the designer part but that would have been neat.
True, the World Series analogy is a shamelessly rediculous stretch, but we do feel very strongly that in life and business good things happen when you man-up and take responsibility for your actions.
Profit Blinders
Accountability in business gets lost too often when business owners operate with profit blinders. Have you ever ordered one thing and received another only to be interrogated like a suspect when you request a replacement? Have you ever been granted ”just enough” restitution in an impatient and reluctant tone? I have, Mark has, Anita has…..everyone in our office has, and we all agree that it makes you want to strangle the perp and make it look like an accident.
Of course you can’t do that, but you can take your business elsewhere and hit them in the wallet! Did Circuit City go under because they wouldn’t cover my VCR that broke two days after the warranty ended? Who knows? Perhaps they treated every customer like they were the only electronics source in the universe creating a massive army of dissed and pissed ex-clients like me. Just throwin’ it out there……
My point is this; When it comes to professional accountability, we at Helser Brothers “get it.” We promise that if we ever muck up an order (which is rare) we will always “man-up” and never ever leave you feeling that we could have done more.
It is no secret that Mark and I are big fans of all things baked, so it should not be a big shock to those who know us that we find Denise Hoopers the following accomplishment extremely impressive.
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“Tens of thousands of people” submitted to the 2010 Pillsbury Bake-off Contest, but Denise Hoopers “Deluxe Triple Chocolate Cookie” recipe has emerged as one of only 100 finalists! This means that she has recieved some fancy prizes from Pillsbury and is also being flown to Florida in May for the championship.
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Just for fun, we are offering 10 “Cookie Research Grants” to be used for the baking, munching, and analysis of these “Deluxe Triple Chocolate Cookies.”
All you have to do is comment below indicating your desire to participate, and we will send a $30.00 Visa gift card (till they are gone) to cover your cookie baking expenses.
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There are no strings attached, but our hope is that after baking and enjoying Denise Hoopers cookies you will go to the Pillsbury website and review her recipe. Have fun!
We have had several (more than usual) reports of shock-induced fainting.
This sudden loss of consciousness has typically been experienced by Helser clients on the receiving end of our “extreme customer service,” but recently we have seen an alarming increase in home-owner faintings as well. Apparently, the emotional impact of a high quality window treatment unveiling can be too much for some to handle and they abruptly ”check out.”
Stylish Fainting Helmet
In an effort to help avoid any unnecessary injuries we recommend asking your client to assume a seated position before the unveiling. For those more acutely affected by this potentially dangerous phenomenon we recommend a helmet. Here are some helmets that will provide safety without sacrificing style.
Also, as a courtesy we will be providing free smelling salts by request and while supplies last.
One of our Drapery Hardware Specialists commandeered a go-cart that Mark brought in for repairs. I guess Ruth had some free time after lunch and performed the cart-jacking minutes after the repairs were complete. According to witnesses, the look on her face was one of mischievous glee and….well…..frankly she seems like a new woman since the incident.
Our parking lot makes a fantastic track so maybe Mark should leave it here so the employees can blow off some steam or get energized when they need to!
We are an industry that produces a large amount of scrap fabric so we thought you may find this interesting and fun to try. According to Wikipedia, this craft is regaining popularity in Japan as an ecologically friendly alternative to wrapping paper. In the US we use 4 million tons of wrapping paper every holiday season…..so why not!?!?
click here for some common Furoshiki wrapping patterns.
See what happens when you delegate?!?! The invitations to our company Christmas party went out today and this was what we found in our in-boxes. Mark and I are feeling a little bushwhacked right now but we will get over it …… At least Mark is the one who got stuck with the girlie “tadaaa!” pose and I got the much cooler “raise the roof” pose!
Heather “the H-factor” Fox is our super-talented marketing assistant and is widely regarded as the most fun person on mother earth to work with.
Santa came early and brought “Josie” a 10 week old Shih-Tsu. She has brought tons of laughter into our home with her charming ways and is a fun addition to our family.
Our good buddy JD Winters is a hyper-talented and uber-creative contributor on an “as needed basis” over here at Helser Brothers and this Halloween he really pulled out all the stops for his little boy. Here is a video of his costume!
This year a neighbor encouraged us to have our kids enter a craft in the Arizona State Fair. After looking through the catalog, one category hit close to home: Metal Craft. We knew we had the resources, but the kids also needed the skills. So one afternoon, Briggs and Finn came over to Helser Brother to have me teach them how to weld and to build their projects for the Fair. After looking at all the possible parts, the kids quickly decided what they wanted to make…….
Welding must be part of the Helser DNA, because after only a short while, Briggs and Finn were able to weld without my help. The finished products were mother and child bird team by Briggs, and a sword fish by Finn.
Yesterday the whole family went to the fair to find out if the boys’ projects had placed. We are happy to say the Briggs placed second and Finn third in the Metal Craft category.
The kids liked welding so much that they can’t wait to work on their next project. We’ll keep you posted.
We rushed an order out to Christine at “Strictly Fancy” the other day which not only spared her a heap of grief, but also made her look pretty good to her client. In a very nice thank you card she said ”You guys made me look like a window treatments superhero!” The image above came to mind and “Princess Curtana” was born
If you would like to have our Princess Curtana desktop wallpaper just check your screen resolution by clicking here , click the correct size 1024 x 768, 1280 x 1024, 1280 x 768, 1366 x 768, then right click the image and select “set as background”
How on earth did we survive before wireless internet access? I’ve got a nice breeze, Vivaldi in my ears, single-digit humidity, 75 degrees, ducks, birds singing, yorkiepoo’s, labradoodles, and chiweenie dogs everywhere, and no bugs! Man, if you’ve got to work, this is how to do it. It is easy to forget after a hot summer, but now I remember why we live in Arizona…..Have a great day, and neener, neener!
Just throwin’ it out there……
…… At least Mark is the one who got stuck with the girlie “tadaaa!” pose and I got the much cooler “raise the roof” pose!
Santa came early and brought “Josie” a 10 week old Shih-Tsu. She has brought tons of laughter into our home with her charming ways and is a fun addition to our family.
How on earth did we survive before wireless internet access? I’ve got a nice breeze, Vivaldi in my ears, single-digit humidity, 75 degrees, ducks, birds singing, yorkiepoo’s, labradoodles, and chiweenie dogs everywhere, and no bugs! Man, if you’ve got to work, this is how to do it. It is easy to forget after a hot summer, but now I remember why we live in Arizona…..Have a great day, and neener, neener!
