Big, Dumb Companies and their Sales Prevention Departments
by Greg Milner on 07/01/09 at 11:33 pm
Michelle and I are getting married in April - if we can convince a big, dumb company to take our money.
Ah, I must be getting old. 2009 has sort of crept up and clobbered me over the head while my back was turned. Or to be honest, while I was lying prostrate on the deck of my boat ‘The Other Woman’. Which brings me to The Woman (the one I am to be married to in a scant few weeks) and a sorry tale of such ineptitude and Big Company dumbness it’ll not only take your breath away, but cheer you no end with the thought that
‘maybe my little salon ain’t so bad after all’.
Michelle and I plan to marry on the beach at my favorite place, Rottnest Island, which is about 11 miles off the coast from here. Right on the beach at Thomson Bay is the island’s only hotel, where we’ve hired a marquee overlooking the anchorage for the reception.
This century-old hotel, a former Governor’s holiday residence from colonial days, has been undergoing a much-needed multi-million dollar refit, just completed.
Looks great. Pity the outside is let down by the ineptitude of the company running the joint. This is a well-known, publicly-listed hospitality company which runs resorts all over the place. For NINE MONTHS we’ve been assured by one employee after another that yes, the wedding date is locked in (April 4), that yes, everything will be ticketey-boo, that yes, we’ll hold rooms for your guests blah blah blah.
Except that every time we call them to ask about some detail, their staff has changed (again) and nobody knows anything about it, and can we start again please?
This has happened at least three times. Just before Christmas we sat down with the new functions manager, who actually took notes, nodded assuringly, made all the right noises…and then, a week ago, was forced to send an embarrassing (for her) email announcing that ‘management’ had decided they couldn’t confirm any weddings for April after all! And this with just weeks to go, and absolutely no chance of finding another suitable venue, ‘cept maybe a tent in the backyard.
So right after I send out this issue, The Woman and I are driving down to the marina, jumping aboard The Other Woman, and heading straight over to the island again to sort out this idiocy. After all, I am trying to give this company many thousands of dollars, and they’re making it difficult for me!!
Here’s what’s instructive: You remember that best-seller called ‘Don’t Sweat the Small Suff? It’s absolute crap. In YOUR business, DO sweat the small stuff. Make SURE you, your staff, your marketing material, your back-up service all tells the same story, all the time.
There is magic in the detail. When it comes to business success, there IS value in paranoia. Be paranoid about what your staff are telling your customers. Make mystery calls. Pay people to mystery shop for you. Nothing is more disheartening and wasteful than
Great marketing sabotaged by the Sales Prevention Department in your business
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A post by Greg Milner The odd idea, a bit of prodding, a nudge here and there, a little fun, and the occasional dose of brutal reality. Greg is co-founder and CEO of Worldwide Salon Marketing, a writer, direct response marketing consultant, specialist marketing systems adviser and coach. He (sometimes) accepts private consulting clients. |
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