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Reputation is Everything
Many times, companies in service fields provide a much lower level of customer service than is provided by most other industries. In fact, it has almost come to the point where customer service needs go unfulfilled so often that customers assume prior to even making the request that it is highly unlikely the service provider will actually fix the problem.
Example: My daughter has recently graduated from college and is now living in her first “real-life” apartment in Washington, D.C. On four occasions already this year, she has notified her property management company that her air conditioning has gone out. Each time, an HVAC technician (and I use the term “technician” lightly) eventually has worked on the unit only to have it go down again within a few weeks. In speaking with her about the situation, she says that she is not surprised, that “the property management firm has a poor reputation related to service work.” Will we rent a property through this management company again?
At Standard, we are committed to providing best-in-class customer service. That means doing what we say when we say we will do it, and taking it a step further by training our folks to check for any additional, underlying problems whenever they are on-site to address a customer service issue. We often find that what we have been called to check on has not been caused by our work, but we try to always provide a diagnosis so that the customer has a path to follow after we depart. To constantly keep this commitment top of mind, I have placed a sign on an exterior wall of our shop building, clearly visible to our employees each day that says:
Do It Safe!
Do It Right!
Or
Don’t Do It!
For those who might disregard such advice, the exit door is only a few steps away.