The neighborhood was ready but customer service was unknown...
Just yesterday, five neighbors and myself were ready to hire a tree service to improve the appearance of our front yards. We are still in a struggling economy and so we thought not only would we receive a fair quote but that the owner of the service would be happy to have our business. Two of my neighbors re-arranged their schedules to be home and receive quotes upon my informing them Walter would be there.
As Walter was finishing up my quote, I mentioned the two neighbors (his prospects) were also interested in receiving quotes and that a total of 5 of us would most likely utilize his service. One of the neighbors lives right next door. As we were finishing up, I saw the other neighbor walk out to the curb in anticipation of speaking with Walter, so I pointed her out to him. He said he would speak with her in a minute. Believing everything was in order, I went back into my house.
An hour later, a third neighbor called to say Walter left without ever having stopped by either neighbor’s home and they were angry. Needing to inform Walter of our decision, I phoned to let him know that if he needed to leave, he should have at the very least told his pending clients that he was looking forward to helping them but would need to return at another time. I then added that he put me in a very awkward position. That was the turning point where I declined his bid.
His marketing-communication message said to me that his securing the business isn’t important, therefore his doing thorough work is most likely not important either. Walter had an opportunity for fabulous business development as our neighborhood keeps a list of excellent service providers. Unfortunately for everyone, Walter did not value building relationships and lost his opportunity.
To attract more sales your customer service needs to be impeccable and only then will you enjoy a Smooth Sale!
