My original intention was to devote this column to leadership
and how the old rules no longer apply. Then again, neither do the
new ones (circa late '90s). So what's an entrepreneur to
do? Well, I got sidetracked (I'll get there in a moment), so if
you want to find out how to lead your business to increased
success, read "Lead the
Way."
Now for what distracted me. I have often heard entrepreneurs
decrying their larger (much larger) competitors for stealing their
business. We have long advocated that one way to fight back is to
provide what the big guys don't. That can be more convenient
hours, personalized services, customer communication or a generous
return policy. Or it could be as simple as good, old-fashioned
customer service.
The other day, I read an article about Home Depot having a
disappointing year. The article suggested that service at the
stores was suffering. I can attest to that. Last year, executive
editor Maria Anton and I went to a Home Depot with her three
daughters (at the time, 5 years, 2 1/2 years
and 1 month old) looking for samples of crown molding. When we
finally located the department, it took forever to find someone to
"help" us. Help is in quotes, because this employee, when
asked for assistance, merely pointed to the wood pieces and told
Maria (who had her newborn in her arms) to "cut it
yourself." We subsequently went to a local lumberyard, Ganahl
Lumber, which not only offered free, precut samples, but where we
found an employee who was more than happy to assist us.
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Or how about this one? Last week, it took executive editor Karen
Axelton seven conversations and several visits to Lowe's to buy
doorknobs. Phone calls were not returned, information that should
have been in the computer wasn't, and a process that should
have taken minutes instead took many hours spread over six days to
complete.
But the capper of my rant on poor customer service happened in
late January. One of our contributing writers was researching an
upcoming piece about Martha Stewart wannabes. She called the E!
network in New York looking for a PR contact for Katie Brown (have
you heard of her?), a Gen Y seeker of the crown who apparently
appears on E!'s Style network. Remember how we often tell you
every person on your staff is crucial to your success, from you to
the receptionist? Well E! apparently doesn't believe that. Or
they don't care. Our writer asked for the PR department and was
told by the receptionist that E! "doesn't give out the
names of its PR people." At the receptionist's command,
the writer then went online searching for Katie's Brown's
PR contact and came up blank.
Undaunted, our intrepid reporter called E!'s Los Angeles
office, where the phone was answered by the very same receptionist,
who barked, "I remember you!" into the phone and told the
reporter she needed to fax her information to E! and "someone
might get back to you." Our writer's plea for an e-mail
address fell on deaf ears. (After days of persistence, our writer
finally found one helpful staff member at E!) I won't get into
how stupid it is to pay for a PR department that the press
can't contact. But if you're not familiar with Katie Brown,
now you know why.
They say dissatisfied customers tell about 12 other people about
their bad experiences. Well, I just told about 2 million of you.
That's how the word spreads. There is no excuse for this type
of behavior at businesses of any size. And while none of these
incidents occurred at entrepreneurial establishments, I've
heard enough horror stories to know that too many of you are not
serving your customers and clients well. Are you one of the guilty?
Poll your customers. Shop your business (or have a friend do it).
You need to find out before it's too late.
Of course, not all businesses are like these. In January, I was
visiting our New York office, where Entrepreneur publisher
Carrie Fitzmaurice and I were working late. At 9:30, we realized we
hadn't eaten, and Carrie called Sunny East, a local Chinese
restaurant to see if they were still open. They said the kitchen
had closed, but if we got there within 10 minutes (easy to do in
NYC), they'd be happy to serve us. Hear that? Happy to serve
us. A practice well worth emulating.