Post Best and Worst Ladies Room Observations on Bathroom Blogfest ‘06

San Diego, CA - October 28, 2006 – Stephanie Weaver, Experienceology author and consultant, is leading a group of female bloggers in taking a look at women’s bathrooms around the world and posting their findings online. As a tribute to the National Kitchen and Bath Month, this group of female bloggers will be posting on Bathroom Blogfest ’06 their observations about “ladies rooms” they encounter and their importance in creating great customer experiences.

Beginning October 30, and lasting for one week, women with blogs focused on the customer experience (listed below) will post the best and worst bathroom observations on the Bathroom Blogfest ‘06, from museums to retail to the office down the hall. The Blogfest is the brainchild of Weaver and Susan Abbott, a business consultant and consumer researcher in Toronto. “Women have a unique perspective on the world, and are responsible for more than 80% of all buying decisions. Women also tend to notice more details than men, and spend more time in the bathroom than men do,” commented Weaver, consultant and author of the Visitor Experience Handbook (Left Coast Press, 2007), a soon-to-be-released book about how to turn museums into great customer experiences.

National Kitchen & Bath Month is the time of year when kitchen and bathroom industry professionals, students, and consumers across the country promote awareness and excellence in design. “We wanted to launch Bathroom Blogfest ’06 to coincide with the NKBA’s annual October event, and to remind business that it’s all about the customer experience. We are honored to have notable business writers Jackie Huba, author of Customer Evangelists and the upcoming Citizen Marketers: When People Are the Message, and Linda Tischler, Senior Writer for Fast Company magazine joining us,” added Abbott.

According to Weaver, the problems with restrooms are so widespread that they often result in legislation to try to correct them. “The State of Pennsylvania has had the Restroom Equity Law in place since 1990. This law was passed to shorten the unfair delays women face in public places. Men rarely have to wait, ” Weaver stated. Dubbed “potty parity” bills by the media, similar bills have since been enacted in New York City, Virginia, Texas, and California. “We hope that the Bathroom Blogfest ‘06 will encourage business owners and designers to address these problems as a sign of concern for their customers, not because they are forced to do so by law,” added Weaver.

According to Abbott, during Bathroom Blogfest ’06 the following questions will be examined:
How do bathrooms help support, or detract from, the customer experience at a
variety of businesses?
If we could advise clients on how to change the experience, what suggestions
would we make?
If we could speak directly to designers, what changes would we ask them to make?
Which bathrooms belong in the “Stall of Shame?”

Participants are encouraged to visit these blogs:
Church of the Customer
Customers Are Always
Customer Experience Crossroads
Experienceology
Fast Company Now
Flooring the Consumer
The Curious Shopper
What I Do For a Living

Look for photos and posts with the tag: “ladiesrooms” on flickr, del.icio.us, and Technorati. For more information, contact Stephanie Weaver or Susan Abbott.

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Participating bloggers for the Bathroom Blogfest ’06 are:

Susan Abbott (Canada)
susan@abbottresearch.com
Customer Experience Crossroads

Reshma Anand (India)
reshma.anand@gmail.com
What I Do For a Living

Sara Cantor (US)
saralynncantor@gmail.com
The Curious Shopper

Jackie Huba (US)
jackie@customerevangelists.com
Church of the Customer

Maria Palma (US)
maria@salondemaria.info
Customers Are Always

Linda Tischler
ltischler@fastcompany.com
Fast Company Now

Stephanie Weaver
sweaver@bigbrainactivity.com
Experienceology

Christine Whittemore
cbwhit@solutia.com
Flooring The Consumer