One of my favorite things to do is to pay it forward at Starbucks.
You know...when you pay the total bill for the car behind you in the drive-thru line.
I love doing it. It starts my day off right, prepares my mind to serve others, and occasionally generates a new lead or opportunity.
Like it did for me last weekend.
My Saturday started with an early morning appointment to show a rental property to a new potential tenant who inquired from my website.On my way home, I stopped at Starbucks. The drive-thru line was longer than most mornings, but no worries...it was Saturday, and I had some free time.
I always look in the rearview mirror to see who is in line behind me. I enjoy putting faces on my spontaneous gestures.
This time, a woman was driving a newer model white Lexus, with a teenage boy in the front seat next to her. And I was going to make their day by paying for their Starbucks order.
In full disclosure, I have custom license plates on all of my vehicles that most people in my hometown will connect to me and my real estate business.
It's all part of the master business plan.
After I paid for my order, I told the gal at the drive-thru that I wanted to pay for the car behind me.
"That's so nice of you to do that!" she said.
Their total was $8.30. Not too bad for two people!
I drove away s-l-o-w-l-y... giving the car behind me enough time to hear the good news about their paid-in-full order and to (hopefully) glance at my license plate.
This is not the first time I have played Santa Clause at Starbucks. I do it two or three times a week. Most of the time, I drive away, feeling fabulous, and nothing else happens.
But yesterday was different.
About an hour later, my phone rang.
"Is this Dennis Jones?" the lady on the other end asked.
"Yes", I said.
"Were you at Starbucks about an hour ago in a silver SUV?", she asked.
"Yes", I said.
"Did you pay the bill for the car behind you?" she asked.
"Yes, I did. Was that you?" I replied.
"Yes, it was, and I wanted to call and say thank you. I noticed your license plate, and my son said there was a real estate office with that name, so we googled you when we got home and found your website," she replied.
We continued with about two minutes of small talk, and then I said:
"Well, I wish you, your son, and your family a blessed day. Maybe one day I will see you again".
Then she blessed me with her reply, "Oh, you sure will. My husband and I will be looking to buy a home this spring when our lease expires. We will be calling you for sure!"
I asked for her email address and set her up on a slow-touch email drip campaign to keep our connection alive.
The next time an agent laughs at me for paying eight bucks for two cups of coffee, I'll remind them how much they pay for online lead generation programs.
Then I will keep moving forward...and paying it forward.
I love doing it. It starts my day off right, prepares my mind to serve others, and occasionally generates a new lead or opportunity.
Like it did for me last weekend.
My Saturday started with an early morning appointment to show a rental property to a new potential tenant who inquired from my website.On my way home, I stopped at Starbucks. The drive-thru line was longer than most mornings, but no worries...it was Saturday, and I had some free time.
I always look in the rearview mirror to see who is in line behind me. I enjoy putting faces on my spontaneous gestures.
This time, a woman was driving a newer model white Lexus, with a teenage boy in the front seat next to her. And I was going to make their day by paying for their Starbucks order.
In full disclosure, I have custom license plates on all of my vehicles that most people in my hometown will connect to me and my real estate business.
It's all part of the master business plan.
After I paid for my order, I told the gal at the drive-thru that I wanted to pay for the car behind me.
"That's so nice of you to do that!" she said.
Their total was $8.30. Not too bad for two people!
I drove away s-l-o-w-l-y... giving the car behind me enough time to hear the good news about their paid-in-full order and to (hopefully) glance at my license plate.
This is not the first time I have played Santa Clause at Starbucks. I do it two or three times a week. Most of the time, I drive away, feeling fabulous, and nothing else happens.
But yesterday was different.
About an hour later, my phone rang.
"Is this Dennis Jones?" the lady on the other end asked.
"Yes", I said.
"Were you at Starbucks about an hour ago in a silver SUV?", she asked.
"Yes", I said.
"Did you pay the bill for the car behind you?" she asked.
"Yes, I did. Was that you?" I replied.
"Yes, it was, and I wanted to call and say thank you. I noticed your license plate, and my son said there was a real estate office with that name, so we googled you when we got home and found your website," she replied.
We continued with about two minutes of small talk, and then I said:
"Well, I wish you, your son, and your family a blessed day. Maybe one day I will see you again".
Then she blessed me with her reply, "Oh, you sure will. My husband and I will be looking to buy a home this spring when our lease expires. We will be calling you for sure!"
I asked for her email address and set her up on a slow-touch email drip campaign to keep our connection alive.
The next time an agent laughs at me for paying eight bucks for two cups of coffee, I'll remind them how much they pay for online lead generation programs.
Then I will keep moving forward...and paying it forward.
