The players of the National Football League (NFL) were ecstatic this week when they learned that the “official” referees would be returning to their jobs yesterday. They had been on strike for the first three weeks of the season. In the opinion of many, the season has thus far been a debacle as the replacement refs made what the players and coaches perceived to be blunder after blunder. Some claimed that the officials lack of control of the game and incompetency were actually adding to the players’ exposure to injury. It will be interesting to see how long their love affair with the regular referees actually lasts.
Give and Take
I noticed, at a relatively young age, that the most difficult and contentious labor negotiations occur, not when workers fail to negotiate additional perks and compensation, but when management actually tries to take away something that is already in place. In the case of the NFL, without getting into too much detail, among other things the league wanted to change the way in which the NFLRA received their benefits. That went over like a lead balloon.
Your Clients
The same holds true in the real estate industry. Has your firm ever tried to hire a less expensive and ultimately inferior photographer to photograph a client’s home? Or use a cheaper paper stock to print brochures? How did that go over?
Once you provide a certain level and quality of service, the only option is to try to continue improving upon it. Anything less is unacceptable.
Novelty
A similar experience occurs when you offer something that none of your competitors offer. The uniqueness of the service is not enough. The execution has to be superb, or from the client’s perspective you would be better served not offering it at all.
Greener Grass
And so football Sunday ended without a glitch, or at least without any controversy that the media embraced. I guess it just goes to show once again the wisdom of Joni Mitchell when she bellowed throughout her most popular ballad, “Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone…..” I will be watching to see how many weeks pass before the tailgaters in that “paved parking lot” are complaining about a “blown call” which cost their team a win.
How do you maintain a high level of service with your clients?
Have you ever been taken for granted?
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