Do you remember the first time you sunk your teeth into a hot, steamy, insanely-delicious Krispy Kreme doughnut?
OH MM GG.
I remember my first time – it was back in late 2001 and I had just landed in the Atlanta area and had been told that there were a number of things that I had to try if I was to become a true native.
One of these things was heading to the Krispy Kreme shop on Ponce De Leon, especially when they were open late (or super-early morning) and grab one of the legendary sugar bombs as they came right off the conveyer.
“Sure…” I thought, “It can’t be that good… but I’ll give it a whirl.”
So I snuck over there in between studying one late night with a bunch of friends and my world changed.
It was as if the “scales” had fallen from my eyes and a new paradigm was instantly created – I had no idea that doughnuts could be this tasty!
I ate 5 of them that night not caring about the aftermath of consuming that many face-melting yum-yums. I would never perform this courageous (and stupid) act again (eating 5 in quick succession that is…) but I would return more than a few times over the next decade.
And finally I was able to take my oldest so that she too could experience the mind-numbing awesomeness that is the Kreme of the Krispy.
And yes, I thought it better to limit it to less than 5 doughnuts for my 5 year old this time…
An unbelievable experience, to say the least. We watched the entire process from batter to lift to fry to creme to boxing – eyes wide open. She could barely wait and apparently I couldn’t pay fast enough!
Memories in the making, literally, and I can’t wait to take my second daughter when she is old enough for this very important right of passage. I am learning, though, as 3 might be still too many for that age…
Making it Count, Making it Stick
The power behind that first impression, that first experience, is so great that it can span generations and inspire people to instinctively pass on the experience to their children and children’s children.
I wonder if this can be aptly applied to our blogs? I wonder if there’s anything that you and I could be doing that might create that powerful “first time” experience that they’ll share with others and even perhaps pass on to their own networks (and beyond)?
I don’t have any explicit advice (although I have tons in the Archives) but I thought it was worth bringing up for you today to think about it for your own properties.
There’s always opportunity for you to improve but it doesn’t have to be in the “big” ways – sometimes it’s the smaller things that count the most.
Have a great Memorial Day!
Great analogy. And, now that you’ve got me thinking about Krispy Kreme, I’m tempted to make a trip across town! Have you ever had their devils food cake donut when “it’s hot” – Unbelievable!
This kind of post does not help my diet, but Memorial Day is more for burgers and hot dogs anyway
You always manage to infuse your posts with a sense of wonder and sense of humor!
Great thoughts on the “first time” experience John. First impressions are important. They create that WOW factor that makes us want to come back for more.
But companies have to be careful. They need to continue to provide a great service/product each visit or time. If they don’t, they’ll lose that “wow” factor and the traditions will stop.
I think one thing to note about Krispy Kreme is the consistency in the quality of their doughnuts. So each time you have a hot, fresh doughnut it will almost taste just as good as the first time you tried a fresh hot one. This is something that I believe carries into blogging by being consistent and providing valuable content for the readers.