Next Level Group

What are tolerations? They are those pesky things in life that can really bug us. They are the “straw that breaks the camel’s back,” in many cases. Tolerations are things like:

1. The copier that leaves a line down the middle of your page
2. The employee that consistently comes in 5-10 minutes late
3. The burned out light in your refrigerator
4. Not having enough time to enjoy your hobby anymore

How do you get rid of tolerations?

1. Identify and make a list of those things in life that you are tolerating and if they were changed/fixed, you wouldn’t have to think about/deal with it anymore
2. Determine a period of time in which you would like to get rid of those tolerations
3. Choose a couple to work on at a time within the time parameters you have set
4. Celebrate when you have gotten rid of the tolerations in your life!

In my last blog post, I talked about putting on “fresh eyes” when regarding the portions of your business of which the customer has contact.  Consider how you feel about these new areas and how you would feel/respond to a business that had similar challenges.  Then, if anything needs attending to – DO IT!  Your customers will notice and your profit margin will grow.

Other parts of your business that may need attention:

*Your employees:

• Unsmiling
• Unfriendly
• Not helpful
• “it’s just a job” attitude
• Badly or underdressed

*Your materials:

• Poorly printed
• Spelling errors and mistakes
• Looks like they have been copied too many times
• Little thought put into them
• Not user friendly

*Meeting with you:

• Are you on time?
• Does your visual image fit the prospect/customer’s visual image of you?
  • Are you dressed appropriately for your job?
  • Are you well-groomed?
  • Are your clothes in good condition?
  • Did you check your breath?
• Are you enthusiastic about meeting with him or her and can they tell it?
• Are you knowledgeable about your product?

You get the picture.  Customer service is more than just a face-to-face interaction; it also involves the customer’s perception of everything about your business and how it affects them.  Would you rather do business with a company that had little or none of the above challenges or one that you perceived “simply didn’t care”?  Don’t lose customers because you just aren’t paying attention!