Your opinion matters
Your opinion matters... greatly. Without you, the customer, we're nothing.Realizing the extreme truth in that fact, I have to tell you that I listen... and do my best to pay attention to what you have to say.
Because that's true, the comment from +O'Neil Godfrey a few weeks ago on a "Party Mad Monday" post here on Cater-Hater made even me think about a few things.
I hadn't given much thought to what would happen when (and if!) I started to see comments on "Party Mad Monday" (PMM) posts - mostly because I wasn't sure what kind of comments I would see, if there would even actually be any. Now I realize something I'd never thought about before; comments can be an integral part of the Party Consumer versus Party Business Owner story. In fact, it seems to now make sense to me that to ignore the comments would mean I failed to recognize an important aspect of what PMM posts are all about.
Honestly, the comment written by +O'Neil Godfrey caused me to realize how people who comment and what they have to say can dramatically shape the purpose of each future PMM post, which of course is largely because readers on Cater-Hater are welcomed and allowed to become more than passive bystanding readers. Now that I've thought about it, thinking about it this weekend, I've decided that, depending on the comment, I will do my best to reference it in the future to help forge ahead your voices - your premier voice as a party consumer, to help underscore your point.
And I love options!
Now that I've been writing PMM's since December 2012, I feel like I'm getting a pretty solid grasp and a pretty good idea of the gist of what you feel as consumers who are largely ignored when it comes to your voice and the choices that you'd like to have when dealing with your local caterers and party planners. You can expect some of the same, yet not always spoken the same; making the necessary point, continually, that you guys aren't happy - which is why you usually take matters into your own hands and create your own parties without the help of a professional. I thought about this... comments also allow me to take some detours that I wouldn't have ever thought to take - and with that in mind, I've realized that by doing what I can to "tell your story", it allow other readers who agree with and understand exactly how you feel; to become indirectly involved by being able to relate to what I've written about how most people,whether they've thought about it or not, feel.Telling your "story" or your side of the obvious breakdown that has happened between you, the party customer and party business owners just makes sense to me. Because it's actually been radically missing from the "conversation" (not in private, but especially on the Internet); that most business owners (party planners and caterers) have about your very fair and normal wants, desires, wishes, and needs. Normally, at least it seems to me, you should enjoy being thought about on a personal level, instead of being treated like a "mass production" consumer/customer, as if you're not real.
Like peas in a pod... we like the same things; good deals
If any of you new Party Mad Monday readers are fans of gorgeous parties, which I suspect you are, well, we're like peas in a pod here. Know that PMM's are a perfect example of what IWhat gives you the right to talk about all this?
The background that I have is, first, about being just like you; a customer, first, who at one time had no idea how to create "party magic", churning out parties that look phenomenal; classy and first-class, while also kicking out a menu of delectable food at the same time, effortlessly. If this isn't something that you're accustomed to often doing, a lot of this stuff can seem damn near strange and definitely complex, especially when you get into having to pull city permits and deal with health food inspectors (yes, I realize that this is something that you think would never happen to you, but at the same time, unknowingly - you may have already produced an "illegal" party or special corporate event, and didn't get caught by the "officials" doing it- so of course you had no idea that you needed permits and a health inspection in the first place, which is fine too - in a way, because that's what I'm here for - you to ask).
So, Party Mad Monday subject matter is the type of thing that I enjoy writing about (even though I usually have absolutely no idea what I'm going to say), because it's normally how I think anyway - hating injustice the way I do, although I've had to get used to being blatantly honest about how I feel about how you're often treated by loser people within the party industry. So, the type of material that I write is naturally designed to speak about what you don't like about how this business works, first and foremost. A book that I currently have in the works, tentatively titled "Untitled" (I'm kidding about that, I'm just not at liberty to speak about the title of the book, just yet.), speaks more in depth about how you feel and ways to make a success of the negativity of the downsides of it. So, writing this book isn't a radical departure for me. It's looks like it's going to be a very minimalistic, stripped down book about parties that I'm finding interesting as an "experiment" (at least to me, anyway) to write. Not sharing what I've written so far I think is a wise choice - because now I can go back, revamp it if I feel that I need to and add additional information without having to make any changes to what I've already written. I'd rather you read the final draft once, rather than however many revisions I'll have - that's a little too much to ask of any Cater-Hater reader. Let's face it, you've all got better things to do. I "get" that. And oh, by the way, you're welcome (that's my sarcasm, don't mind me).
Is this a party business owner who is NOT okay?
This post is definitely organic, birthed as I'm writing it, as you can tell... kind of random. Irregardless, I still say that party business owners, at the end of the day need to worry more about your opinion, instead of their own. I'm still not sure that they actually know how to get focused on that fact. But that's what they need to do. It's apparent that they're not sure about how to go about things and what would actually work. The methods and tactics they're using are pretty stripped down, sans "your voice" and full of "their voice", unfortunately. If this is their method of "what works" they need to go back to the drawing board and start over again.Looking naive, it appears that party business owners have thought that this would be a quick and easy "fix" because they've felt that they hear and understand your "voice", when really they're assuming things that aren't real and consequently are extremely off base. I wouldn't have any reason to develop and write this Party Mad Monday thing if that weren't the case. They assume too much about you. And, it's too bad that they're not even beginning to see that this is more complex than they could have ever have envisioned, and that I will continue to write and stand by you, the party consumer, before I'll stand for what they obviously believe (a bunch of self-centered crap).
I'd be interested to find out what you have to say about all of this so far - not Party Mad Monday posts necessarily (of which you're more than welcome to comment about), but more about the title of this post; Party Business Owners: Think About Your customers, For a Change - instead of always thinking about yourself. I got a little bit off track. But I'm still on your side.
*****
I think if we keep talking about the cost of parties (I write the blog posts, you write comments), together, maybe we can break down some of the party industry's price barriers and shame some of the people who've taken your money and delivered a poor quality product right into growing a conscious and treating you right (nice thought, huh?).
Opportunities to be inspired about parties are everywhere. Yet, people looking out for your wallet are few and far between. My goal is to inspire you, causing you to question the way things are that have been the status quo for too long. When we stand together and speak up, we can be a powerful force.
Let's keep the conversation of change going. Because in the sea of everyone talking, one voice is a whisper... several voices are a scream.
Leave a comment and share your thoughts, ideas and suggestions below. Remember to be as specific as possible because what you have to say helps us all.
Always... be encouraged and encourage others too,
“Truthbomb #240: We need you.” - Danielle LaPorte
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