Business - General Information

As a Business you want only positive feedback.  You want  testimonials that make you proud.  

So why is it that a business receives complaints?  Here are the top ten reasons.

1. The Business does not have a complaint procedure in place.
    What happens when a customer complains?
    Does the employee know what procedures have to be followed?       
    Is a manager immediately notified that there are issues or concerns?

2. The customer is unable to reach a manager or position in authority? 
    The manager or owner is unavailable.
    The manager or owner does not return the call.
    The manager is not informed there is a problem.

3. There is no feedback mechanism for the customer?
    There is no check system in place to evaluate the workmanship or the product.
    What could the business have done better?
    What did the business do right?

4. There was no agreement in place.
    The agreement was verbal and not in writing.
     Changes to the original agreement were not done in writing.
     The agreement was never explained and contained hidden clauses.

5. Lack of leadership and company policy.
    The owner does not have a supervisory person in charge of the job.
    The owner does not have progress inspections or reports built into the contract.
    The owner is wearing too many hats.  Salesman, Coordinator, Estimator.

6. No quality control.  
    There is not progress review or reports.
    There are no interim quality checks.
    There is no interaction with the customer until demand for payment.

7. No compromise.
    Making a mistake and not taking responsibility.
    Making a mistake and not compensating the customer accordingly.
    The business fails to be proactive.  Hopes that customer won't complain.

8.  Failure to supervise staff and subcontractors.
     The business lays blame on staff rather than the owner accepting responsibility.
     Supervision happens only when there are concerns or complaints.
     The owner has to ask his staff what happened.

9.  Handling Every Customer Equally.
     The business fails to recognize that each customer is different.
     Every customer is different with different a different knowledge base. 
     The business fails to say no to potentially problem clients.

10. No Mission or Vision Statement in place.
      Even as a sole proprietorship you need to understand what your company represents.
      Emotion and not Policy dictates the next step in customer relations.
      Reactive to complaints rather than proactive leadership.