I wanted to share this today as I think it is a great example of doing the right thing even when it costs you. In this case it may have only cost pride, but it could have easily just been brushed under the carpet.
So I got the following email this morning.
Congratulations!
You will be receiving a complimentary autographed copy of Pete Wilson’s Plan B from MichaelHyatt.com <http://MichaelHyatt.com> .
I hope that you enjoy the book.
Thanks,
Lindsey
Well needless to say I was very excited to get a free book, but at the same time did not remember entering the giveaway that Lindsey had mentioned. I had entered other giveaways on Michael Hyatt’s blog previously, just not this one. I was a fan of the author, Pete Wilson. I follow him on Twitter and occasionally read his blog, WithoutWax.tv.
I did not give much more thought to the book until after lunch. After lunch I had the following email in my inbox.
Hey everyone,
A few of you might be wondering how you “won” a free autographed copy of Plan B as you didn’t enter the giveaway on Michaelhyatt.com. Well, I messed up. When I pulled the list this morning, I accidentally grabbed an old data file. (Dumb.)
All this to say – you will still be getting a free autographed copy of Plan B. And we will also take care of selecting winners from the correct data file.
Next time, I won’t deal with spreadsheets before ingesting my daily supply of caffeine.
I apologize for any confusion this might have caused. I hope you enjoy Pete’s book.
Have a great day.
Lindsey
Well now it made sense why I did not remember entering the contest. But more importantly was how the problem was resolved. They did the right thing. Lindsey did not have to send out the second email. She could have just sent the books to the actual winners and to the recipients of the initial email. Most of us would not have been the wiser.
Instead she took the high road and confessed that she had made a mistake. She was humbly sincere and had a way to fix the problem. I am sure on the back side it was an even more humbling experience going to her boss and telling him she had made this mistake and needed help fixing it. Then possibly having to find a way not only to get more books, but to get Pete Wilson to sign them.
She did find a way and this resolution has done multiple things for me the consumer. One, it showed me that these people really care about others. Two, it shows a spirit of truth and honesty which makes me trust them even more. Three, in an indirect way it makes me trust Pete Wilson even more because he is being represented by a group that is upfront and honest in it’s practices.
If you are going to do business, do it right. Be upfront, honest and trustworthy. We all make mistakes and Lindsey – well done in making your mistake turn into a win. I will let you all know how the books is.
Follow Lindsey (@lindseynobles), Michael (@micahaelhyatt) or Pete (@pwilson) on Twitter.
(A side note, Pete’s blog has a post that came out two days before this posting about what to do when you screw up. Check it out.)
