When In Doubt, Go To Your Customers

Well, I finally got around to reading the April issue of Inc. Magazine – and one of my favorite columns, “Street Smarts” by Norm Brodsky. Mr. Brodsky details how he survived his first year in business – complicated by a major negative event (a NYC transit strike). A fun and interesting read.

In particular, this passage caught my eye:

“I took away from the episode one of the most important lessons I’ve learned in business: When in doubt, go to your customers. They will tell you what they want and lead you to solutions you’d never come up with on your own. Indeed, just about every successful new initiative I’ve taken in business since then has come from listening to customers.”

I couldn’t do a better job of emphasizing one of the benefits of delivering superior customer experiences – the development of close customer relationships (with enough trust that you can go them and ask for true, honest input). I’m not talking abo0ut that annual customer satisfaction survey you might do. I’m not even talking about interactive, discussion-based focus groups. (Although these both may have a valuable place in your feedback plan.) I’m talking about customer relationships that are so close that you can just pick up the phone and call your customer or client and talk openly about their needs and about ideas you may have.

Realistically, you can’t develop that type of relationship with every customer. And this respect does not build up overnight. But, you should keep your eyes open for those with whom you have a special rapport and/or whose opinion you respect. I know that some of the best advice I have received for my consulting practice has come from clients that were willing to let me know what they valued (and sometimes what they didn’t). That kind of honest, constructive feedback is invaluable to a business.

~ by idiscover on May 5, 2009.