Yesterday I went to get my oil changed at Jiffy Lube in south Austin. I’m usually a sucker for local businesses but I was in a hurry and knew I had a Jiffy Lube coupon. When my oil change was finished, the man who had been helping me let me know that I would be getting a phone call from customer service. He said they would ask if I were likely to recommend that store to a friend and that if I wasn’t going to give them a 9 or a 10 that I should let him know now so he could fix the situation. This question was such an obvious plug for getting their Net Promoter Score up. According to Wikipedia a Net Promoter Score (NPS) is “obtained by asking customers a single question on a 0 to 10 rating scale, where 10 is “extremely likely” and 0 is “not at all likely”: “How likely is it that you would recommend our company to a friend or colleague?”

The truth is I would have given this guy a 9 or a 10. The service was quick, he gave me new coupons to use next time and everyone was very friendly, but I was sort of turned off by him asking me to give them a good score. Shouldn’t their service speak for itself? Am I more likely to give him a good score since he offered to fix it if I wasn’t satisfied?

Many businesses are focusing very heavily on NPS as their main metric for customer service. I think it is a good metric but that companies should continue to focus on other metrics of success as well. Instead of asking me if I would recommend their company to a friend, they could have asked if I was satisfied with the level of service I had received.

I am impressed that Jiffy Lube is measuring their customer service success in general, but I think they should expand their range of metrics. What questions could Jiffy Lube ask their customers to gauge satisfaction?

Marketing yourself in the social media world can be very, very complicated. How do I act right, look right, say the right thing online to position myself as an expert or a trusted advisor in my field? Of course, there are hundreds (maybe even thousands) of things you could do or change to market yourself, but lately I’ve come to find that you can market yourself by doing just one thing. Being real.

One person who has impressed me with his ability to become one of the most famous players in the NBA by being real is Kevin Durant. Now it doesn’t hurt that he happens to be one of the best scorers in the league, but the reason that players and fans love him as much as they do is that he is himself 100 percent of the time.

Spouting off inspirational tweets like, ‎”Hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard. I live by this quote and it has helped me become who I am today,” his fans are given a true glimpse into how he gets through tough times.

Yet he also isn’t afraid to be honest and emotional with his fans, “Everyone’s been asking me about my mom dancing and getting the crowd hyped at the game yesterday lol. Blessed to have such a wonderful mother! Love having her sit courtside!”

But most importantly, he is extremely relatable and makes fans feel like he is just like us. “Man they be cheatin terrible on angry birds…make me wanna throw my phone out the window!!! lol.”

So next time you feel like your presence online isn’t what you wish it were, take a break from over analyzing and try to be real.

I happen to think Austin is one of the best places in the world. It’s why I went to school here and it’s why I still live here. It doesn’t surprise me at all that every year SXSW has more and more attendees, because besides being an awesome festival it is amazing to spend a little time in Austin.

If this is your first time at SXSW you should check out the post I wrote last year with a few quick tips and tricks. And if you like queso (or want to try it for the first time) you should 1000% trust me when I say I know the best places.

SXSW is a great time for parties, but last year I actually learned quite a few things.

Here are a few of my favorite posts from 2010 SXSWi sessions:

The importance of networking across

What is the value of creativity?

When nothing is secret: Imagineering the fully digitized future

If you are coming to SXSW, I would really encourage you to attend sessions, ask tough questions, start controversial conversations and reach out to important people. What are you trying to learn this year at SXSW?

I just moved to a new area of town, which means that I am basically starting over in terms of finding businesses to help me with my chores. I didn’t know where to take my dry cleaning, get a bagel or have my oil changed. Since Austin has a very strong local business culture, I began to seek out friendly entrepreneurs to help me get my chores done. But do you know what I found instead? A bunch of assholes.

It started at the dry cleaners when the woman wouldn’t serve me until I got off of my cell phone. I am totally fine with having that as a rule in your store, but it was my first time inside so how was I supposed to know the rule? Instead of politely explaining the rule to me (ex. “We are really glad you came into the store, but for the future know that we have a rule that says we can’t serve people on their cell phones.”) she stared at the wall blankly and pointed to a sign that said “No service til you get off your phone.” I was trying to give them business, but instead I got frustrated with being a noobie in their store.

From this moment on I am instituting a no asshole rule. If you are a jerk, I wont do business with you.

BUT, if you delight me, dazzle me, thank me for doing business with you I will make it worth your while. I will be a regular, I will tell my friends and I will spread the word of your company.

Business owners- What do you gain from being an asshole? By implementing policies, acting arrogant and being angry you only create a bad experience for customers.

If you treat every customer you deal with as the most valuable one you may ever have, you might just find that it’s the truth.

“There is always the temptation in life to diddle around making itsy-bitsy friends and meals and journeys for years on end. It is all so self conscience, so apparently moral…But I won’t have it. The world is wilder than that in all directions, more dangerous…more extravagant and bright. We are…raising tomatoes when we should be raising Cain, or Lazarus.”- Annie Dillard