Buying decisions are made for one of five reasons…Reason #5 Service

In looking back at the other four articles in this series, I need to point out that these are not numbered in order of importance.  The statement is; when you or anyone else chooses one product or service over another it will be for one or more of these reasons.  Because price is  listed first, it does not mean price is most important.  Now………….

We all know the difference between good service and poor service, but more and more there is also “no service”.  Sometimes, the level of service is associated with the price.  Case in point;  some of us shop in the SAM’s type of store.  Not only are there no people to help you, you have to find your own boxes.  We gladly sacrifice our local grocer’s high caliber service for wholesale pricing.  Other times I go to “Grocery World” and let the kid carry my bag to the car.  I am pleased with both shopping experiences because my expectations are fulfilled both places.  It is when there is a disconnect between expectations and offering that there is a potential for dissatisfaction.

You can set your business model up for any level but you cannot go back and forth on individual transactions because you will disappoint. Whatever the highest service level you offer will become the minimum against which you will be measured.  “The only thing in the middle of the road is a dead skunk” (or in Texas – armadillo).  Test it.  Stand in the middle of a discount store looking needy.  Are you surprised when lots of people in red vests go by without so much as a “can I help ya?”  Now visit a department store (selling the same brands) and repeate your experiment.  Your blood will start to boil after about 3 minutes.  Your expectations are vastly different. 

What are your customer’s expectations of you and your company?  Do you discuss them with your team?  Do you measure how well you do?  Are there incentives within your organization that reward good service?  If the answers to any of these questions is “not so much” you have a potential for the disconnect of expectations.

This is where I could be totally self-serving and talk about the service level at Bluff being as high as it is ……. but I will resist.

Good Selling