Just catching up with a friend who sorts the annual MOT out on my car as well as anything else that crops up-great guy, ex Bentleys and saves me loads of hassle as he picks the car up from my house.
The garage he used to go to nearby that is licensed to do MOTs was owned by someone he had known for over 30 years, but retired recently and sold the business to new owners. Apparently ever since the garage has changed hands, it has lost both staff and customers due to the unprofessional way they have been conducting business.
The staff and customers of this garage voted with their feet, well to be more precise: their wheels. They went to other garages; your loss, their gain.
It’s not that people don’t like change; we all tend to like to stick with what is already familiar to us, from the newspaper we read to the shop where we buy our groceries.
The same applies to your services. It’s hassle to find move energy suppliers or mobile contracts. We all know of a providers who make us jump through hoops in order to go elsewhere, not to mention the customer retention department you suddenly get transferred to who, amazingly are able to offer you quite a significant discount to remain with them… (that infuriates me even more: if I’ve been a customer with you for a while, why not offer me an incentive to remain with you in the form of a nice discount-that’s something I will remember when I’m considering moving on).
At a recent armed forces business owners network, an REME was finishing off his training to become an electrician and was asking our “room” how he could get and retain customers.
My answer was simple: “turn up on time, do a good job, keep your customers informed of what’s going on and clear up any mess when you leave. You’re a cheeky chappy, you will do well”.
I honestly don’t think he will have any problems with his business given he’s good at his job; everyone needs qualified tradesmen who are professional. Add to that a bit of forces banter and he’ll be well supplied with brews and referrals.
