Here’s a cautionary tale about laptops at the airport, and how scammers scheme to take yours off your hands. I’m not sure if they could use the same scheme in the U.S., where you have to take the laptop out of its bag, but I’m sure there are ways to do it.

Bottom line: Keep your eye on your stuff as you go through security! (Thanks to Gizmodo for the pointer.)

In writing about a BusinessWeek article called ‘Customer Service Champs’, marketing guru Tom Asacker adds his spin on what makes customer service great (link here).

Some of them sound familiar to me from the Association Meetings’ Feb. cover story on what we must change about association meetings, such as making sure you’re keeping up with what non-related organizations are doing in the marketplace. As Tom points out, “For example, when people get accustomed to one-click shopping at Amazon.com, they come to expect that same type of speed and convenience everywhere,” including, I would add, your registration Web site.

Another of Tom’s gems is about developing emphathy: “Simply ask yourself, “How would I feel if . . .” and then make sure to strategically focus on that feeling. If you really don’t know how you’d feel if . . . , then put yourself in that exact situation and find out,” he writes. Think about that the next time an attendee comes up to you with a complaint. Do you really know how they’re feeling about whatever the problem may be? The example Tom gives about computer support is a great way to think about how to help them save face on those dumb requests. Honesty, along with communication, and humor also go a long toward keeping satisfaction levels high.

Go ahead and read Tom’s post. It’s a keeper.

No, it’s just satire from the fabulous Andy Borowitz’s Borowitz Report, but it’s edging so close to today’s reality with the airlines that it’s a little too spooky to laugh too hard. A snip:

In the latest cost-cutting move intended to rescue the beleaguered airlines industry, representatives of the nation’s major carriers announced today that they would no longer offer complimentary jet fuel but that such fuel would be available for purchase on board most domestic flights.

American Airlines spokesperson Carol Foyler announced the company’s decision to institute a “fuel for purchase” option at a press conference in Chicago, arguing that such a move was “long overdue.”…

The airlines spokesperson said that once a flight has departed, flight attendants will ask the passengers to chip in for the fuel necessary to reach their final destination.

“If you’re on a transcontinental flight, the choice will be the consumer’s,” she said. “Do you want to go all the way from New York to Los Angeles, or will you settle for Cleveland?”

Happy Monday!