Polle de Maagt 
Polle de Maagt
Story.
After a 24h trip from Amsterdam via London and Singapore, I had landed at Sydney International Airport to spend another 4 hours waiting for my connecting (Economy) flight to Auckland, New Zealand, final destination. I was tired, cranky and jet-lagged and couldn't wait to see my bed. A bed. Any bed.
And for whatever reason, the airplane was delayed and had a last-minute gate-switch (really annoying when you're tired and not paying too much attention).
When I entered the plane, crew was waiting for the passengers (as usual). A somewhat older crew member asked for my ticket, looked at me and asked how he should pronounce my name, Polle. As most English-speakers pronounce my name as Polly (which is a brilliant name for a dog or a parrot, but nothing I'm particularly fond of) I replied Paul. He thanked me and I took my seat.
What they did.
For the rest of the three hour flight from Sydney to Auckland, Drew did his normal routine. Drinks, meals, tax-free swag. But every now and then he would address one of the passengers by their first name. While his colleagues hadn't even bothered to memorize names (nor did most of the other staff members on my previous flights), Drew looked like he owned the place. Chatting, making jokes, helping passengers and clearly having fun.
Why it works.
A simple thing as memorizing several random passenger names makes a huge difference.
A name is the smallest possible sign that someone sees you as a person, not a seat number. It costs nothing but attention. And because nobody else on board did it, it stood out even more: the gap between what you expect and what you get is where people remember you.
Try it yourself.
Find the moments where your people already see the customer's name: a booking, a ticket, an order, a badge. Ask them to use it once, at a moment that is not in the script. Not in every sentence, and not read from a screen. Once, and meant.
Thanks, Drew, really. You made my day.
Drew, if you're reading this: you should ask for a raise.
Colleagues of Drew, if you're reading this: Drew should get a raise.
Tomorrow, learn the names of three people you usually only nod to, and use them.
Source: my own experience, Air New Zealand flight from Sydney to Auckland, 24 May 2012. First published on polledemaagt.com in June 2012. Boarding pass made with Midjourney.
