The first Thursday of each month features a “best of” X5 Management blog. The intent is to showcase and revisit some of our most popular blogs from the past. We hope you enjoy them!
This is a very simple concept but may businesses struggle to consistently achieve it. In our Business Consulting practice we work with many clients who truly value service. What does “truly valuing service” really look like.
I was speaking with a Business Associate of mine and he commented that he recently purchased a very high-end truck. (I will keep the Brand of the truck out of this Blog, as this may have been an isolated incident)
His truck required warranty work. After the dealership did testing on the vehicle they determined that nothing was wrong. (The truck didn’t have the same problem that the client experienced a week or two ago) While the vehicle was under full warranty, the dealership proceeded to charge him for their time. While the bill was only $400, the impact on their decision to do this with a $65,000 truck could have significant impact.
In my observations, this happens way too often. The team members within a respective business lose connection with one another. While the Sales Rep nows the client very well, no other member of the Service Dept. has any form of connection with the client. This is often why we tend to call our Sales Rep. “We had connection with them.” The Sales Representative holds the clients hand every step of the way, but “after sales” service can be a totally different story.
In your business, be mindful of what message you are conveying to your service team. Do you want this customer for the next 5, 10 years, or a lifetime? Simple actions to get all of your team thinking this way can make a big difference in the long run.
While I am not suggesting you waive fees or never charge a client, sometimes the perception of what decisions you make, regardless of the size of the bill can have significant long term impact with your client and their relationship with your business.
photo credit: Thomas Hawk via photopin cc
