I remember Thanksgiving in 1993 vividly. I had invited a college friend over for Thanksgiving that wasn’t able to get home to his family for the holidays. I don’t remember much about the food we ate that day, but I do remember the conversation. I was a religion major in college and I am still completely obsessed with religion and theology — my vice is watching televangelists — and the impact that they have on people and society. During the course of our conversation we disagreed on a point — Calvinism v. Arminianism — and I went on the attack.

Long story short; my “friend” left that day crying. Literally. In the 17 or 18 years since then I like to think that two things have changed: 1. I am wiser 2. I value people more than I value being right.

I did not say that I am less opinionated or that I don’t like being wrong, it’s just that over the years I have decided I am going to pick the hill I am willing to die on. Over the last 15 or 20 years of leading people and being part of a team this has been a great lesson and one that I am still working on. The goal is not for me to be right, the goal is not to show someone that I am the boss, the goal has been to better serve customers and help to develop great staff.

If my being right doesn’t affect better serving customers or developing the staff around me I am very willing to not die on that hill. This doesn’t mean that I like the decision that we are landing on, and it doesn’t mean that is not driving me crazy inside that we aren’t doing what I want to do. It just means that I’m getting wiser. I like to think of it like the boy who cried wolf. If every decision or topic becomes an argument about what I want to do, it will eventually lose its impact when I am truly passionate about a decision.

I know there are a lot of people out there who are getting their first work at being a supervisor or leading people. Take a lesson from me. You want your legacy to be developing those around you, not destroying them. I want to be remembered for those people I lifted up, not the ones I left as roadkill along the way.

This video is from part of Susan Coker’s presentation Marketing Non-Summer Camp Programs at the Southeast Campfire Conference on January 11, 2011. Currently VP of Marketing for the YMCA of Boulder Valley in Boulder, CO, Susan has guided the marketing efforts of multiple YMCA associations in her career. Susan is also a freelance Marketing Consultant for YUSA and is leading the national camp task force on how the new brand will play a role in YMCA resident camping.

Have you ever gotten into an argument with a company or organization based on the principle of ethics? I’m currently in one with the snowboard seller The-House, and these types of complaints can lead to long-term problems. In their eyes I am a measly customer who is complaining about something so miniscule it will never affect their bottom-line. And, it won’t. But, I will fight to the death over their lack of ethics. These types of fights are not something they want to be involved in, and it’s definitely something you don’t want your camp to get involved in.

I purchased my first snowboard since 1995 on The-House.com last week. I took a lot of time to decide on the brand, the model, and the online company I was going to use to purchase it. Living in Charlotte, NC, the prices on snowboards are not the most economical. My first snowboard was bought 16-years ago using The-House catalog I mailed away for. I decided to give them another shot.

After A LOT of research, I chose a board. To my surprise, The-House had this board in stock even though it was not the current year’s model. I found it on another Web site as well for $20 cheaper, but I had a history with The-House. Plus, The-House was offering an awesome gift pack that included my choice of Anon Sunglasses — valued at $140. I had actually been looking for a new pair of sunglasses because I don’t always like to board with goggles on — especially on sunny days — but still want some sun and wind protection.

I looked through the “Free” sunglasses list and found the perfect pair — valued at $90 if purchased without a board. I made the order and it arrived a week later. The board was exactly what I wanted. The sunglasses on the other hand, were not the sunglasses I ordered. I ordered the Anon Indee’s. These were the Anon Comrade’s. It wouldn’t be such a big deal, but the Comrade’s were most likely named this because the only people who would wear them are the snowboarding children of ex-Soviet oil barrons. They were gigantic tortoise-shell glasses with large gold bling the size of a Russian Ruble coin. I was not pleased, but understood that it was probably a simple mistake. I went back online, and the Indee glasses were still in stock, but now they were no longer part of the “Free” deal.

I e-mailed the company that they had made a mistake. I waited 48-hours and never heard back. I decided to call The-House. After being on hold for about 10-minutes — where I had the pleasure of hearing their “Free Sunglasses Special” advertisement four times — I was connected with a customer service rep. I asked how I could return the sunglasses and get the ones I ordered. She said they were probably sold out and that it was a “free gift” that could not be exchanged. I explained to her that my receipt says that I ordered the Indee’s, so they should exchange them for the Indee’s, since the Web site was still “selling” them. She told me that I ordered the brown lens ones, which were sold out, and they only had the gray lens ones available. I said, “Great, I’ll take those.”

She told me that this was not part of the “free” deal and that they had the ability to send me different sunglasses than the ones I chose depending on the availability of them. I told her that their Web site does not explain this, and they can’t just send me whatever they want. I told her that they can’t use “$140 Gift” to sell something, but then use the term “Free” when they screw up the order. Plus, they were in stock when I ordered them. An automated Web site should be able to stop the order during check out if the items are no longer in stock. I said there is an expectation nowadays to receive the correct item ordered online, and that they should remedy the situation when they make a mistake and do not put a disclaimer on their advertisements stating, “Styles of sunglasses may change due to stock levels.” There is no such disclaimer, so they should send me the gray-lensed glasses worth $90 for the ridiculous ones I received valued at $140.

She said that she would pass along my criticism, but there was nothing she could do about it.

This is never the answer we should give at camp. If you advertise something, you have to go with it — especially if there is no disclaimer attached to the advertisement.

I made this mistake when I ran a Middle School Madness program for 6th-8th graders. We sent home a 5th-grader once and 10-minutes later I received a phone call from a very upset parent. He said, “I understand this is for Middle School students, but why does your Web site say it’s for 5th-8th graders?” I assured him that it didn’t. He hung up. I went to our Web site, and he was absolutely correct. I swallowed my pride, and called the upset parent and told him that I screwed up. I apologized and I welcomed his child back to the event for free. His son came the rest of the year and continued to be a great participant. I could have lost that customer forever, but apologized and I took the blame for it. It was not my fault — I didn’t type the wrong ages onto the Web site — but I took the blame because it was my program and I should be responsible for every aspect of it.

I am not The-House’s biggest customer. I have bought two snowboards from them in 15-years. But, during those 15-years I have recommended them to a ton of people who have looked for a good deal on winter gear. That has now ended. I have already complained on Twitter and now I am writing this to all of you; all because they lied about a “Free” gift. I could have gotten my board for $20 cheaper somewhere else, but they convinced me to buy from them because of their “special.” Don’t let this happen to your camp. Avoid arguments based on ethical principles, and offer an apology when you screw up.

Update three hours after this post originally appeared.

I received a phone call this afternoon from a very well-spoken and apologetic employee of The-House. He said that they had seen my Twitter comment and then read this post. He once again apologized for the poor customer service and immediately fixed my sunglasses issue. I should be receiving my Anon Indee’s in the next few days. I’ll make sure to post a pic of me in these cool new shades.

But, the point of this post was not to illustrate any type of incompetence and it was not posted so I could get my sunglasses order fixed. It was to illustrate how a simple mistake can turn into poor customer service. As a camp, we need to acknowledge this. We need to make sure our Web sites are completely up-to-date. And if they are not, we need to make sure to still honor these specials, discounts, and programs when customers call us out.

It’s also a great example of how Social Media can make or break you when it comes to customer service. I e-mailed and I called and did not feel like the situation was handled correctly. I complained on Twitter and it was taken care of immediately. What’s this say about the power of Social Media? Make sure the people you have running your Facebook and Twitter pages are your best customer service agents. Strike one against The-House was the e-mail. Strike two was the phone call. But on the last pitch, they came through and hit a homerun after I posted this on Twitter. Let’s make sure your camp hits that homerun on the first pitch from now on.

This video is from part of Susan Coker’s presentation Marketing Non-Summer Camp Programs at the Southeast Campfire Conference on January 11, 2011. Currently VP of Marketing for the YMCA of Boulder Valley in Boulder, CO, Susan has guided the marketing efforts of multiple YMCA associations in her career. Susan is also a freelance Marketing Consultant for YUSA and is leading the national camp task force on how the new brand will play a role in YMCA resident camping.

This video is from part of Susan Coker’s presentation Marketing Non-Summer Camp Programs at the Southeast Campfire Conference on January 11, 2011. Currently VP of Marketing for the YMCA of Boulder Valley in Boulder, CO, Susan has guided the marketing efforts of multiple YMCA associations in her career. Susan is also a freelance Marketing Consultant for YUSA and is leading the national camp task force on how the new brand will play a role in YMCA resident camping.

I’ve been on the road a lot lately. My wife and I drove to my family in West Virginia over the holidays, then continued to visit her family in Indianapolis. Once I got back to town, I decided to take a few more road trips to go skiing. Needless to say, I have stopped at a lot of gas stations in the past 30-days.

I’m sure gas stations near Interstate exits have some of the fiercest competition so they will try anything to get you in the door. One-cent per-gallon decreases, free car wash with a fill-up, etc. I do not own a specific gas-company credit card, so I have absolutely no preference between filling up at Exxon, BP, Shell, Texaco, Flying J, or Pilot (although I loved Pilot’s Free Sandwich Wednesday’s when I lived in Georgia). Since I have no preference, I usually pick the one that is easiest to get in and out of. But, on this last trip, I noticed a promotional tool several dozen times I had never noticed before.

Billboards for gas stations with the words “WE HAVE CLEAN RESTROOMS” on it.

I’m sure this is not a new marketing ploy, but I have to admit that this was the first time I took notice of it. I like to call this type of promotion “Presumptive Marketing” — where a business promotes something that should be a given. We “presume” that if you have public restrooms, they should be clean. But, if you are marketing that you have clean restrooms and they are filthy, you have ruined my trust. I will no longer be a customer since you lied to me.

Most of us do not expect that gas stations have clean restrooms. It’s something very rare. So, when we see a sign that is touting how clean their restrooms are, we have the expectations that they decided to spend a little more money on the upkeep of said restrooms. When one realizes that it was all a marketing ploy to get you in the door — and the restrooms are terrible — it’s easy to feel betrayed.

Does this happen when marketing camp? Is your camp marketing something that should be a given? Have you ever failed to deliver on something that was touted in the brochure?

I surely have. My first summer as a Day Camp Director, I came in after the camp guides had gone out. We had a program called CILTs for 10 to 13-year-olds. CILTs stood for Camper in Leadership Training. We charged an extra $30 a week for it because it came with “Leadership” training. I told my supervisor that we should do away with the CILT program and just allow this age group to be traditional campers. The CILT program was the only option we had for this age group, so we were getting registrations from parents who had no other choice than to pay an extra $30 a week for something they didn’t necessarily want.

I was told to we were not canceling the program and that I needed to create the program. (Oh, I forgot to mention that the program had never been done before and I was tasked with creating it). I hired a head of the CILT program and we created a dynamic week-long leadership program filled with activities that gave these CILTs responsibility and the training behind it, but also one filled with awesome camp activities. But, I kept getting phone calls from parents who hated the program — for two very different reasons.

One: I received phone calls from parents who had kids who loved the camp programs, but did not like the fact that we had them assist counselors, do community service projects and learn from local leaders. These parents would say, “I’m not paying an extra $30 a week so they can do work.”

Two: I received phone calls from parents who signed their kids up to learn valuable leadership skills, not go swimming and play dodgeball. These parents would say, “I’m not paying an extra $30 a week so they can just run around and play games.

It was a fantastic program, but parents each expected something different due to the way we promoted it. Plus, we charged extra money and then didn’t allow them the option to just sign up for traditional camp, or leadership camp.

The next summer we did away with the program and just had traditional camp for this age group. Our CIT program (Counselors in Training) was for 14 and 15-year-olds. I had no complaints from parents that year about how we marketed our programs.

How can you avoid making these same mistakes? Are you promoting something that should be a given? Do you promote something that may backfire in the future if you fail to deliver?

As we welcome 2011 in tonight, there will be one thing missing from this new decade that was part of every New Year’s Eve celebration from 2000 to 2010. The 2-0-0-# glasses that everyone seemed to wear in New York’s Times Square, while watching the ball drop. It was a pretty genius concept, and the inventor probably made millions, especially since people had to buy new glasses every single year. No one would want to ring in 2006 with old 2004 glasses. Each year, they would come out with a new design, slightly modified for the new year.

But, as we say goodbye to the decade with double-zero’s, we also say goodbye to the glasses. Well, not exactly.

When I visited New York this past August, vendors in Times Square were already selling 2011 glasses. Yes, it looks like this niche market will continue their cash flow into the new decade. But, how did they do it? The 0-part of the glasses remain unchanged, obviously, so the wearer’s right eye is still able to watch the ball drop. The left eye, however, is now obscured by the number 11 — with the expectation that he or she will be able to see fine in between the two 1′s.

So, it looks like we will continue to see these glasses in Times Square until the year 2111 — the next time a zero won’t be in the year.

To most of the world, the idea that these glasses still exist is ludicrous. But, if people are still willing to buy them, they will be sold, and the makers will still make money.

Has this ever happened at your camp? Are you still running programs that should have been retired years ago, but have continued on the sole basis that they continue to make money? Or, have you retired a program to make way for a newer one with more money-earning potential that has upset traditionalists?

My first year I worked at a resident camp I was in charge of the Photography program. It was also the first year that the camp was using digital cameras and Photoshop instead of film and darkrooms. Since I was new, I received a lot of the complaints from other counselors who grew up at the camp learning how to develop film in the cramped darkroom down by the lake. I’m not sure why I felt the need to defend digital photography — since it was not my decision to retire developing film — but I got on my soapbox and I defended the decision.

I told them things like, “No one is going to use film in the future, everything will be digital,” and “Developing your own film will be like learning Latin. It will be a talent no one uses.”

This, of course sparked rousing debate from those counselors who felt it was camp’s duty to teach kids the true art of photography. None of these kids were going to use a bow and arrow to hunt their own food, but we still taught archery.

I finally talked to the summer camp director about the decision. I was told that we could no longer do film photography because it was illegal to dump the darkroom chemicals into the septic system. Who knows if this was true, but if so, why did camp dump these chemicals into the septic system for the 50-years before I arrived? Did they just decide to obey the law once digital photography was invented, or were they just ignorant to the law?

But, when it really came down to it, the reason we ditched the film photography program for digital photography was because it was more economical — the same reason everyone else in the country eventually ditched film for digital as well. It was fast, it was cheap, it was something new and cool.

To this day, camp made the right decision — and this was several years before digital actually took over the camera market. It was most likely made due to financial reasons, but it was rooted in doing what was right for camp and the campers. Kids no longer learned how to develop film, but they were learning Photoshop at eight-years-old. They no longer took pics on film and waited to see the results, they took shots and we analyzed them immediately.

If kids stopped signing up for our Photography program, we would have most likely gone back to film, but kids kept signing up. As long as customers still demand it, there will always be people willing to sell it.

That’s why we will keep seeing 2011 glasses on TV, and will continue seeing them until 2111. If people want to buy them, they will be sold.

This is a guest column from Kenny Mills, the District Senior Program Director for the Northwest and Lexington YMCA branches in Columbia, SC. You can contact Kenny at kennymills@columbiaymca.org.

I was walking through a local mall the other day and ended up sitting outside of a store while my brother went inside to buy his fiancé a gift card. I watched hundreds of people rushing around, dashing from store to store with shopping/to do lists in one hand and the other loaded up with bags — some even to the point of cutting off the circulation in their fingers. This classic scene made me think of shopping habits and then eventually to how parents plan and register for Camp.

What type of shoppers are your parents? Are you able to serve all or most of them effectively?

Day After Thanksgiving Sale Parent: These are parents that are up at em’ early on the day after Thanksgiving to be able to get the best deals. Knowing that very few of the items they REALLY want will be left, they trek out anyway in hopes of finding a treasure in the picked-over piles of items that no one else felt was worthy. This type of parent is mostly looking for a deal — discounted rates (75-percent-off plus an extra 25-percent-off and we pay you $10 to actually take our stuff off of our hands-types of deals). Not all camps believe in discounting their prices. That’s OK, but some have no choice. This is one of the only ways they are able to gain participants. If your camp fills up the first day of registration, this is not the type of parent you need to be targeting.

Day After Christmas Parent: Day after Christmas shoppers are looking to get their things in order for next year NOW! They want to go ahead and take care of all the Christmas shopping right after Christmas this year so that they don’t have to worry about it next year. They know what they want, already like the product and are completely content with purchasing it again for next time. These types of parents are looking to sign up for Camp next summer as soon as Camp this summer is over. They loved your camp and have already made the decision to send their camper back to your Camp next summer. They have the ability to purchase ahead of time and would likely be the type of parent that shares how much “We just love Camp______”. You want this type of parent, but are you able to satisfy them? Are you that far ahead of the game that you have Camp planned a year in advance? Do you even start thinking about Camp before February of the same year?

Last Minute Parent: These are the people that you find causing accidents in the mall parking lot, and getting upset at store clerks because they are “out” of what the shopper wanted. These also seem to be the pickiest shoppers; wanting everything they imagined at the best price possible and for it to be completely in stock. These types of Camp parents waited until the last few days to even think about Camp. They storm into your office demanding to get into a camp that has been full since March and they need scholarship or financial assistance. They are also the same parents that might try to drop their kids off without even registering.

Online Parent: These are folks that fall into either one of two categories: Too Busy or Analyzer. Either way, getting them to come in and fill out paperwork isn’t happening.

Too Busy: Stopping in to your office or front desk is too much of a time waster for this parent. They just want to get their kid signed up and not bother with anyone or anything else in the process. They do this sitting at their desk at work because their wife or husband has bugged them one too many times about find a Camp for their child.

Analyzer: This parent wants to compare costs, activities, drive time, camp history, etc. The must compile all of the available info and finally at 1 a.m., after finally getting everyone else to bed, they sit at the computer and make a choice and register online. They work 8-to-5 and drop the kids off at school before 7:30 a.m. and must be home by 6 p.m. to get everything done for the evening. They really don’t have time to stop in and register for camp so doing it online it a much easier and less disruptive way to get their children registered for Camp.

Camp season is an exciting time of year, for some, Camp season never ends. Either you are running Camp or Promoting Camp, Registering for Camp or Evaluating Camp. In this process, think about how you and your Camp might better serve all the different types of “Camp Shoppers” there are out there.

Merry Christmas!