Value isn’t an output – it’s an input!

Whether you are new to the world of business, or winding down a long, profitable legacy: Success is forged one relationship at a time, and relationships are forged with, through and for people.

I’ve always treated business as a subset of life – they aren’t two separate spheres (business and life), it’s all life. I’ve found that the care and feeding of relationships is anchored by the quality of communication and the nature of the action that follows the form of the dialogue, discussion, agreement, or negotiation. 

Fact: if you’re in business, you’re in the people business. Everything evolves and revolves around service to another. There’s no way around or out of it. It’s people who design, implement and sell the product. Those who thrive in business realize early that value isn’t an output – it’s an input. The ultimate judge of value is the person who receives the service or buys the product; otherwise known as the consumer or the person who pays your bills.

Value isn’t an output – it’s an input.

So, if the person who pays your bills assesses value based upon input, it’s important to know not only what attracts your customer, but perhaps even more so, what will drive them away.

There are three avoidable “failures” that will drive your customers to a competitor – and you can make your withdrawal at the bank now if your company engages in one or all three:

1.     Failure to return phone calls promptly – This is a sore that festers, creating anxiety, uncertainty and anger. Your competitor will return these calls, and freeze you out from that relationships you worked so hard to build.

2.     Failure to make “the call before the call” – This is also known as “the sound of crickets” or nothing, silence. Silence is often deadly in a business relationship. People fear uncertainty and change, and they make assumptions in the silence – where the void often works against you.

True customer service ambassadors make that “call before the due date of the deliverable” just to alleviate the concern; to let the party requesting the service or product know that things are in process and, frankly, that you give a damn, that you care. Do you know that a customer needs to know that you care about them before they care about what you know? Remember, you’re engaged in the process of customer service or you're soon out of business – and the process will always be founded and formed through and with communication. 

3.     You fail to provide a measurable return on the customer’s investment – At some point, the client or customer needs to not only feel, but know that what they are paying for has a value. And that value has to be a result that is measurable. For instance, if you charge $10k for a service, what are you charging for? How is it measured? What are the yardsticks of measurement? Is it easy for the customer to determine value? And does she or he who matters most – the customer – have input into the design and form of measurement?

I’ve found that some try to justify higher fees and commission by making things so complicated that only they can solve them. Confusion may reign for a while, but simplicity wins it eventually. Stop confusing people, and live the transparency that most talk about and few embody!

Remember this: if there is a fee or commission charged for a service, and value is only intimated – not implemented – you won’t be in business for long. Return those phone calls promptly, make the call before the call, and let your client know that you realize they are the final arbiter of value. Design your service or deliver your product based around the expectation of the customer. Know that these expectations may change, and be fluid enough to adapt to these changes before YOU become the change!