Monday, December 11, 2006

Kudosworks Update

A great big thanks to Christoph, a mediator from Germany, who alerted me that I'm missing an 's' in Kudosworks.com. Also, here's my report on using Kudosworks.

Kudosworks Update

Getting started and setting up an account was relatively easy. There are a variety of ways to reach out for testimionials. I tried using an email template that can be personalized. I sent a testimonial request to a to a micro-segment of my list to avoid confusing or upsetting people.

The results? The software works. I included myself in the request email and sent a faux testimonial. I received an email telling me of the comment and when it had arrived. I also received the writer's email address so I could contact them if I needed to do so. Not bad, but the trouble started just after that.

Oh, No They Didn't!


The thank you page offers to share the writer's opinion on a totally separate site called Hummingboard. It seems like a 'e-pinions' type of site where comments are aggregated. For reasons that will become obvious in about a minute, I am NOT including a link to them. I clicked through to do a bit more research and found this marketing tag line:

hate shared


I was deeply offended, and frankly, very shocked to find this sentiment. Yeah, I understand it was meant to be provocative, that the site might have a noble intention of warning other of wrong-doing. However, I find that bit of marketing irresponsible give the state of this country and the world.

Making a wrong right

I dashed off a note to the Kudosworks folks who very promptly responded in this way:

Dina,

I really appreciate your comments and want to thank you for this email. I do want to let you know that we are in the process of completely severing the links between the two sites. All mention regarding HummingBoard will be removed from the KudosWorks site. I anticipate this to be done before the end of the year.

The HummingBoard has changed business models a few times and this new incarnation is not likely to survive. So it is very likely that at some point we will be completely getting out of the HummingBoard product all together.

I really apologize for your experience and I will work to expedite the removal of the HummingBoard from KudosWorks.

Again, I appreciate your candor. It is these kinds of comments from clients that really help us to better our product.

Thanks
Herbert Ong


Why is this important?

A couple of reasons.

First, I'm concerned with maintaining my integrity. It's important to me that you know that I actually use and research the resources I recommend to you. And, if not, I tell you my source (which is typically a trusted colleague). I know how much time I save when I rely on stuff recommended by friends and I want to pass that along to you. When ADRPracticebuilder.com re-launches on Jan. 5th as a brand new membership site, it'll feature be a section called Dina Recommends that'll do just that.

Second, I wanted to show a real-life example of an entrepreneur who showed integrity in the face of an error. Mr. Ong answered immediately with an explanation AND his next steps. He apologized- and we all know how powerful that can be. He took responsibility, and in doing so, rebuilt my trust.

Mr. Ong tried, failed and definitely learned something. He didn't let this mistake embarrass or deter him and that's laudable. Because of his honesty, I'll give Kudosworks.com another try in the New Year.

Try. Fail. Learn. Grow!

Dina

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