I was one of the lucky ones who attended the 2008 SEOmoz PRO Training Seminar this year.  It was a fantastic time -- there were highly useful sessions and awesome speakers.  While the seminar was only two days, I took 8 days to visit the area and discovered a lot about Seattle and the Pacific Northwest in general, but also wanted to share some insights I had while watching the fish fly at Pike Place Market.

When you walk into Pike Place from Pike Street (appropriately named, right?) the very first thing you see, other than Rachel, is the Pike Place Fish Market (PPFM) fishmongers, hawking their wares to the passers-by and ever-accumulating crowd of gawkers.  These guys have great placement.  They're right in the front entrance and there's no way you could miss them.  Even if you're blind or just unable to see over the crowd, you'll definitely hear their custom fish chants as they toss around salmon, tuna, trout, mackerel, more fish, crabs (which they call bugs) and anything else for sale.

What makes these guys special?  There are three other fishmonger stalls at Pike Place.  Although these guys are centrally located, the nearest competitor is not very far away yet there are no crowds gathered in the vicinity of any other fishmonger stalls, much less any of the other Pike Place vendors.  And there are hundreds, if not over a thousand people shopping, but the only traffic jam is in front of the PPFM operation.

Their secret is no real secret, but it's something marketers and SEOs sometimes forget.  They engage their prospects.  They're not content to just put their product out there and sell.  They have an elaborate customer engagement plan.  They have group chants and fish tosses, pole climbing, a fish they can trigger to move if you get too curious (hilarious), and their most valuable asset, a colorful cast of fishmongers who really know how to sell by treating every person standing in that crowd as a potential customer. 

Purchasing a fish from these guys is an immersive experience of being treated like the most valuable customer they've had all day, having an entertaining adventure, and getting a great product.  Just visiting?  No problem, they'll pack and hand deliver your fish to your hotel.  From far out of town?  Their packing is approved for airlines, or you can have it shipped back home.  Our fishmonger/salesperson made it perfectly clear: "If anything, anything at all is wrong with your fish when you get home, call me [he hands us a business card], and we'll ship you a replacement right away!"

That's customer service, but more notably and impressive is the system of selling fish they have developed.  The entire purchase process is choreographed from the tentative approach of the prospect, engagement with an employee, presentation of information, closing the sale, and then tossing the fish.  (That's what everyone is waiting for anyway, right?!)  It's a lesson in usability and service.  They also took the time to sign the book my good wife bought from them, and yes, it was choreographed too.

"So what's the point?" you may ask (but hopefully by this point you've been hooked, too). These folks have taken the task of selling fish and turned it into an art.  Their self-declared business goal has been to become "World Famous," and they've done it.  Their artistry was the path.  Their philosophy was the vehicle (read what it means to be famous in their own words).

I think we can all learn something from these guys.  They're world class, and famous. 

How are we making our customers world famous?  How do we make ourselves world famous?