SMALL BUSINESS--A SUREFIRE WAY TO RESOLVE A PROBLEM

For those of you who read my last post, WATER, WATER EVERYWHERE, here’s a coda on dealing with problems with small businesses. 

In my last post, I had mentioned that a contractor who had installed a drain for an earlier water leakage problem came back to look at our de-humidifier. The technician barely looked at the unit and simply recommended installing a new one. Disappointing. Is this the new business plan for an operation that we had used and that had been recommended to us by our trusted but retired waterproofer? Or did we have a renegade, incompetent or avaricious technician? 

We then decided to try one more company that had been recommended by a couple of friends who had been using them for similar services and had been satisfied with the outcome. I called and explained the problem: We have a de-humidifier, only 5 years old. It’s unclear that it's working properly, and we need to assess whether we need a new unit or whether our current one needs repair. In calling this company, we wanted to decide how they compare to other companies from whom we were obtaining estimates. Would they be the best choice to evaluate the issue, and if needed, to perform service? The operator immediately transferred me to Sales—the appropriate department, since we weren’t at the commitment stage yet. I had been very clear that this was an initial assessment/decision on choice of contractor issue, not a call for a service. When I spoke with Sales, they told me that they could come out, and that there would be a $79.95 charge, which could be applied to a new unit. Hey!!!!! I wasn’t committing to using them nor was I committing to a new unit. We were looking for their opinion and would then decide whether they were the company that could meet our needs. I explained that, but Sales wasn’t budging. I asked for a manager. The manager gave me a sketchy answer that their practice was to install a new unit, but if that didn’t solve the problem, they could remove it. Really????!!!!

Since both of these companies had decent reputations and had some positives in the past (the first with our prior experience, the second with our friends’ experiences), Howard and I decided that we needed to find out whether either company would be a viable option but simply had a few off-center technicians, or whether they were predatory and useless to us.

First line of action is usually to go to a manager. I started with the second company, considering their off-base Sales response. I asked for a manager. Asking for a manager can be productive or useless. Sometimes you simply get someone who simply sits next to the person answering the phone. Or you may get a low level manager. Or someone who simply parrots the people to whom you were originally speaking. On this one, I reached a woman parrot. She totally didn’t get the problem. What’s next? The owner.

It’s often difficult to reach a business owner. Receptionists can be overly protective and will often grill or stonewall you. But, I have a magic surefire way to get to an owner:

RECEPTIONIST: “What’s the problem? Maybe I can help you.”

ME: “I’m having a problem with your company, and I simply want to extend the courtesy of a discussion with the owner before I post negative reviews.”

The receptionists immediately changed tone. And this happened with both companies. “Oh, thank you for reaching out. Mr. X is out, but I’ll have him call you as soon as he returns.”

And I did receive a return call from each of the owners in under an hour. The first company owner even apologized for not calling sooner, pretty much apologizing for having been at lunch. Both business owners understood what I was saying and agreed that their staff wasn’t handling the situation appropriately. The owners agreed to talk to the renegade staff people. And, both gave me their direct contact information for any future needs.

A bad review is a killer to a small business. And I was clear that I was serious. My tone, my words—I made it clear that I was promising, not threatening. Assessing both owner responses, tone of voice and substance of discussion, I felt that both were sincere.

DON’T SETTLE FOR THE WRONG ANSWER. USE THE POWER OF REVIEW TO GET TO THE HIGHEST LEVEL