by Martin Perelmuter - President & Co-Founder of Speakers’ Spotlight
Farah and I recently went on what we now call our annual trip to New York City, which we take every 3-4 years. You see, every time we’re there, we are so energized and inspired by the buzz of the Big Apple, that we tell ourselves that we must make it a yearly visit. However, the busy-ness of life has a habit of getting in the way, so we’ve only actually made the trip three times in the past ten years. Perhaps you can relate.
At any rate, our most recent trip once again surpassed our expectations, and left us revitalized, reenergized, and renewed. We arrived on a Friday afternoon and after checking into our hotel, went to Nobu where we met James Cunningham and Mark Jeffries, for a delicious dinner. Next we went to Caffe Vivaldi in Greenwich Village, to see Canadian singer-songwriter Natasha Alexandra belt out her beautiful ballads from behind the piano. Our final stop of the evening was a short walk down the street to the Comedy Cellar, where we arrived just in time to catch the last show at 11:30 p.m.
I’m a huge fan of stand-up comedy, and have great respect for anyone who has the talent and ability to stand in front of an audience with nothing but a mic., and entertain a group of strangers who are judging their every move. No smoke. No mirrors. No fancy light shows, back-up performers, or instruments to help them. It’s sink or swim every time out, and that takes a lot of guts. Nevertheless, I was a bit disappointed by the comics who took the stage that night. Maybe my expectations were a bit too high, but since this was New York City, I guess I was expecting more than what you would see in Toronto, Winnipeg or Vancouver on any given Friday or Saturday night.
When the last comic finished his act, at a little after 1 a.m., we were ready to head straight back to the hotel to sleep, as it was already way past our usual bedtime and it had been a long day. Just as we were getting up to leave, the MC took the stage, and with a burst of energy announced “LADIES AND GENTLEMAN, MR. CHRIS ROCK!!!” As you can probably imagine, the place went nuts, as Chris Rock came running down the stairs, and jumped onto the stage. For the next 30 minutes, he dazzled the hundred or so lucky people who happened to be there that night. He left the stage a little before 2 a.m., and as we left the club, now wired and way to excited to sleep, we knew we had experienced something special.
The rest of the weekend was great – we saw Five for Fighting, one of our favourite bands, in concert on Saturday night; had a few celebrity sightings, including almost bumping right into Howard Stern and his girlfriend strolling down Columbus on Sunday afternoon, before flying home on Sunday night. The highlight of the weekend, however, was definitely the surprise Chris Rock performance, which I’m sure I’ll remember for a long time.
Later, upon reflecting on the weekend, I thought: Why was this such a highlight? After all, I’m a much bigger Jerry Seinfeld, John Stewart and George Carlin fan, and in fact, if I knew Chris Rock was performing in New York that weekend, I’m not sure I even would have bought a ticket to see him in concert. The reason, of course, is the surprise factor.
What is it exactly about a surprise that makes it so memorable? The obvious answer, of course, is that the unexpected always grabs our attention, and makes a lasting impression. But the other part of the answer has to do with expectations.
If I had gone to see Chris Rock in concert, my expectations would have been set in advance, and most likely he would either have met, slightly exceed or slightly fallen short of them. However, since I walked into the comedy cellar expecting to see 5 or 6 local comedians, and walked out having seen the guy who hosted the Oscars in the most intimate setting imaginable, my expectations were blown away.
Which got me thinking – one of the most important rules of business is the importance of managing, and exceeding expectations. Whether delivering a product or service, organizing an event, or planning a vacation, the key to our satisfaction will most likely be determined by how much our expectations were either exceeded or not met. Meeting professionals and event planners are always looking for ways to exceed the expectations of their delegates and guests, and using the surprise factor can be a great way to accomplish this.
While it’s not always possible, having a surprise speaker, entertainer or celebrity make an appearance can be a great tool to adding the WOW factor to an event. Of course, in some situations, the headliner needs to be advertised as a drawing card, and in other situations, having a marquee speaker may not be appropriate. However, there are many situations where attendance at an event is essentially mandatory, and adding a surprise element can be a great way to delight your delegates.
So, while serendipity is not something that can be planned, a well thought out and executed surprise may be the spark that transforms your next event into an experience that will long be remembered and talked about.
I’m looking forward to my next trip to New York, hopefully next year, although I know my expectations will be higher than ever.
Tags: Farah Perelmuter, James Cunningham, Mark Jeffries, Martin Perelmuter, New York City
