And the new year begins!

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The New Year is Upon Us Again! Happy 2011! »

Jan 02

And the new year begins!

Here we go! The ball dropped less than 48 hours ago, and life is back to "normal!" I am knee deep in websites, accounting, marketing and all of the other wonderful services my companies provide. The post office has me on hold for API shipping issues. My bank has me on hold for Quickbook issues. My printer has me on hold for marketing issues. I can't wait til Monday to get everything going!

Today I had an experience with a construction company which I need to share. I am working on replacing a bathroom (busted pipe) and am looking for quotes. On Friday, I set up an appointment with a contractor who claimed his company could do the entire job. Today, I got a call to confirm. Very professional so far. Then they asked the question I didn't expect. "Will all three of you be there?" At the time I booked the appointment, I told them it would just be me. Well, they then proceeded to tell me that we would have to reschedule (after I booked my day around them!) I told them that this was not acceptable, and that if they wanted the opportunity to work with me or my clients, they would need to meet with me solo. They said no. I told them I guess they don't want the business (probably $5K - 6K.) I have shared this story with a number of friends, aquaintances and colleagues, including the company name. I can tell you that they have gotten at least 25 direct negative referrals from me so far.

The reason I bring this up is that I want you to start the new year with a bang. Please remember to be flexible and adaptable. Remember the old adage:

There are only 2 rules in a service business.

1) The customer is always right

2) If the customer is wrong, see rule #1

If you want to walk away from a customer, do it in a professional manner. A negative will travel 20 times faster than a positive!

Let's all be successful in 2011!

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