As of this writing the United States Government has been shut down for about ten days. Many of us look at the problems our country faces and are pretty ticked about how our two parties can’t find a way to work together. Listen to the news or read the opinions of many people online and you’ll hear words like “immature, selfish and criminal” to describe what the general population thinks about our politicians. This is the brand they have created for themselves.
If I were an up and coming politician I would be salivating over the opportunity to differentiate myself from the pack. I’d do things like:
- Tell the truth and be real. “Yes. I did it,” would be my reply to most of the stuff they would dig up on me. I’d embrace the “here I am, warts and all” mentality and would know that I’m not a fit for everybody. I believe people respect that.
- Take any money unless the job was done right. Again I look to common sense. If you hire me (which is basically the same as being elected) to paint your house, I would not expect full payment until the job was signed off on. Sure, maybe a deposit to help with cash flow, but most of the money would be paid based on the performance. Production based compensation for politicians will get things done.
- Not allow politics to be a career. If these offices exist to serve the people, then I would work another job or build my business and serve the people concurrently. Serving would require a great sacrifice.
We could go on with a bunch of ways to differentiate as a politician. It would be refreshing to the people if a dude running for office stood up and just told the truth. It would also have more impact if the people knew that the dude was there to serve and not just there for a big paycheck and better benefits than ‘the people.’
This would begin the journey to our faith being restored in regards to the leaders of our country. The fundamental problem with both parties is that they have lost sight of why they exist. They think it’s about a party. They think it’s about anything other than the needs, dreams and pains of the American people. Until they get back to that and erase the lines they’ve drawn thing will not change and their brand will suck.
Such a great opportunity for the real public servants to step up and differentiate!
What’s this have to do with your business?
When I owned a painting company I would love seeing my competitors show up in an ugly truck, covered in paint. I loved it when they left a mess. I loved it when they took 3 weeks to get someone a bid. And, truth be told, I loved it when they didn’t respond when there was a problem.
I did not love what it did to the clients…the people that put their trust in them to do a job. These clients work hard, have financial needs to meet, medical issues, family problems and such…the clients don’t need another thing to stress about. It’s wrong when a company doesn’t come through for the people that put their trust in them.
The Good News in a World of Bad Service
When my competitors blew it I had a chance to stand apart. It gave me a chance to truly show people the difference between a kick-ass company and the other guys.
Companies spend so much money trying to market themselves. Mailers, pay-per-click, lead generation services, blah, blah, and blah. Yes, some of this stuff is needed. But, until you master the little things in your industry that the other guys are failing at, don’t spend money on this stuff.
Don’t spend the money until your service is flawless.
Doing so will only accelerate and amplify your bad service.
I love companies that don’t pay attention to the little things and screw up. They show us why we need to do our due diligence as consumers. They show us why ‘awesome’ costs more. They weed themselves out and allow the best companies to raise the bar and protect people, paychecks and property.
If you need a couple quick takeaways to focus on today, start with these:
- Over-communicate
- Give first
- Listen
- Jump all over problems now. Take it on the chin. Don’t defend. Just make the problem better.
Do that for a while and watch how quickly your business grows.
[us_btn text=”Want More Help? Check out The Strongpreneur Podcast ” size=”” align=”left” icon=”” target=”_blank” color=”contrast” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fitunes.apple.com%2Fus%2Fpodcast%2Fthe-contractor-fight-podcast-entrepreneurship%2Fid964304361%3Fmt%3D2″]
