The real cost of NOT doing all the right things in all the right ways!

Moving from a one-bedroom apartment on the 16th floor of a New York high-rise to a cozy bungalow with a two-car garage home in Florida, we discovered the new house had too many empty rooms.

That meant furniture shopping – lots of it and fast!

We found several awesome items in a nearby consignment store. That was a great solution because there was no wait. They could deliver the very next day.

The commercial furniture stores had abundant choices, but nothing in stock. Order now and wait… and wait… and then wait some more. ?

Fortunately, I was able to locate a recliner with an electric motor that would be ideal for watching television movies and that could be delivered next day. Whoopee!

The recliner worked great for about two weeks. The electric control unit became extremely tentative about reclining. Some days, yes. Other days, not so much. ?

I reported the problem to the recliner store. They informed me they could and would only provide a service call if the chair was completely broken. In other words, intermittent issues didn’t count. “But I’ve had the recliner for only ten days,” I explained. That didn’t move them.

So, what did it cost them to be unwilling to provide a follow-up service call?

It cost them future business with us and no positive reviews or referrals (although I love to tell the story).

Here’s the bottom line: The decisions we make and the policies we implement either work for us or against us in the future. That goes not only for the furniture store but also for every business in every industry. The real cost of not doing the right thing in the right ways is that they lose a customer.

When customers and clients are disappointed because they felt you shortchanged them and did something wrong, they simply go away, never come back.

By the way, doing all the right things in the right way builds the outcome everyone wants. Happy, gratified customers who tell the world for years to come about their total satisfaction.

P.S. I’m happy now. I purchased a new recliner and donated the other one. And being the gentleman that I am, I won’t tell you the name of the furniture chain. I will tell you we’ll never go back.