n four different jobs over 37 years, I never met a customer who was impressed by or benefited from our sales record. Not one customer really cared about our sales numbers unless it was somehow going to translate into better service. In working with clients over the years, I am convinced that focusing on service yields financial performance and organizational success far greater than when sales is the organizational focal point.
Unfortunately, gaudy sales numbers seem to excite some organizational leaders as they seek to grow their top-line revenue at blistering rates. At these organizations there is pressure to accelerate growth, supporting a “bigger is better” mentality.
Yet, sophisticated clients are seldom impressed with the revenue size of an organization. These customers seek services and products that are of high quality, and are delivered accordingly. From the employees’ perspective, if they work at organizations that prioritize sales over service, they often are left with more work, their same pay and perhaps less job satisfaction as quality can suffer when sales growth is king. When sales rule, both customers and employees suffer.
So, if service has taken a back seat to sales in your organization, consider the following:
Service, not sales, separates you from the competition.
Maybe it’s just me, but it seems that just about every company touts great service. Unfortunately, not every one of them delivers on that promise. Marketing great service might attract some new sales, but if the customer receives less than advertised, the probability of ongoing or repeat business dwindles quickly. Conversely, your company will leap ahead of the competition every time you wow the customer.
Sales growth cannot be sustained without service excellence.
Your salespeople are going to be challenged in the market if your company has a less-than-stellar service record. Deliver consistently great customer service, and your salespeople will be genuinely excited about representing the company and passionate about its products and services.
Your “sales force” will expand.
Deliver great service, and your customers will serve as some of your best salespeople. In addition, your employees will be proud of how the company takes care of its customers, which will increase the probability that they will be great ambassadors of your business in the community.
Top performers will be knocking on your door.
Having a nice workplace is only part of the equation to attract and retain talented people. Top performers want to work at organizations that stand behind their products and where quality service is the norm. Organizations need to have a significant population of top performers in their workforce to be able to exceed customer expectations.
Organizations that move from a sales-oriented model to a service model increase the probability that:
Their turnover rate of top performers will be very low.
Business retention rates will be extraordinary high.
Customers will view the organization as a business partner rather than an average vendor.
Companies built on a customer-service platform have a solid foundation upon which sustained managed growth, profitability and success can exist. Let your competition chase new sales as you spend your time out-servicing everyone in your industry. It’s analogous to the story of the rabbit racing the turtle. Let the “rabbits” in your industry hop all over the place as your company steadily follows the great-customer-service path.
At the finish line, you know who wins the race.