Yesterday, we received a curious package in the mail: something soft and spongy, in a black trash-bag like wrap, about the size of a text book.

The return address was from North Social, the makers of the Facebook app we use for our fan page. It felt like … a t-shirt?

Yep, it was exactly that.

They also sent us a nice 4″ by 6″ thank you card with a note from Alex and Brody (the co-founders), along with the business card for Kacey Anderson, their customer experience manager, and a sticker.

We use North Social’s Fan Offer app on our Marketing M.O. Facebook fan page. It’s an app that allows us to promote the free download of 144 marketing tools and calculators (for creating marketing budgets, campaign projections, ROI calculations, media plans, keyword research, etc) to our fans. North Social provides tremendous value for the $29.99 per month that we pay them, so we’re happy customers.

But now, we’re emotionally connected customers. While the t-shirt is an inexpensive gift, it was completely unexpected. And it was appreciated – they took time out of their busy day to show their appreciation, and it put a big smile on my face during a hectic day.

Little things like that do make a difference. What a great customer experience!

Here’s Natalie showing off the goods:

This morning, I also read that Vocus, the makers of PRWeb, acquired North Social for $7M in cash + and an $18M earnout.

Vocus, PLEASE don’t kill the wonderful spirit of the North Social team!