Relationships matter

A great way to get to know a company’s culture before buying into their service is by calling their customer service.

A great way to get to know a company’s culture before buying into their service is by calling their customer service.

I recently called two Internet providers. I spoke with someone from Teksavvy who was delightful, knowledgeable, and supportive. They answered all my questions clearly and simply. I also talked with someone at Bell, and the conversation was more them trying to sell me services than answer my questions. To top it off, it sounded like I was speaking with someone working out of a busy kitchen with poor audio equipment.

Customer service is the first exposure to the type of relationship we can expect from a business.

What’s it like? Is finding the phone number hard? Are the representatives knowledgeable? Are they kind and supportive? Do they seem more interested in selling their services than helping you?

It turns out there are two primary strategies to grow a business. One is by stealing clients from the competition, and the other is by growing the market by doing something different. The first is a long and tedious process. The second is where the magic happens.

Teksavvy doesn’t offer much better internet service than Bell; in fact, Teksavvy doesn’t have their own infrastructure; they borrow the last mile of the Rogers network. But what they do is care for their customers in a way that beats Bell and makes them stand out.

A company more interested in acquiring new clients and less focused on serving their existing customers is a sign of short-term thinking. Often, it leads to low-price offers to lure customers. Except, the short-term gain rarely outweighs the long-term pain.

Relationships matter. Whether personal or business, there’s an inflection point where saving a few dollars doesn’t surpass the emotional cost of a poor relationship.

Let’s not make the mistake of thinking that only applies to customer service and businesses.

Miguel,
Sparknotion – Think Differently.