heartharmony.com.au

If you have ever managed people, you know it is rarely “one big thing” that results in someone being sacked. Rather it is the accumulation of “little things” – the cross word here, the missed result there that build up over time. They build and build until finally the person gets enough negative strikes against them that the boss decides to sack them.

So too with business. It is rarely the big things that lose you customers, rather it is the little things, the petty annoyances that build up over time until one day your customer sacks you and moves on. The problem is that customers rarely complain about the little things.

One of my colleagues mentioned in his blog post four little fees of less than $5 each that had been levied when he had his car serviced. It was enough to annoy him and trigger him to change mechanics. The servicing was fine – it was the little things that prompted change.

I have had my own share of little experiences. I have a dentist who 4 months ago changed the girl who issues the orthodontic accounts. So far not one account we have received from her has been correct. Each month she gets the name wrong, forgets to include the name of the dentist or the treatment number. Each month the mistake is different.  The orthodontic work is fine, but the irritation of each month having to hassle to get accounts printed with correct details on them is enough that as soon as the braces come off my daughter we will be changing dentists. Like I say … little things.

I have heard of customers changing businesses because front displays are too wide so prams can’t get past them easily. Other people have left service businesses because calls were not returned within a reasonable time, or because customer toilets were not regularly checked throughout the day.  People hate dirty floors in shops. They complain to their friends when they can’t hear the girl in the drive-through … but they never complain to management.

But it is not just in the physical world. People get irritated by spelling and grammatical errors in documents and websites. Slow loading sites make them click away. If they can’t easily find what they are looking for on a site, they leave. Website studies by neuroscientists suggest this is because it generates stress and increases concentration demands on people. Whatever the reason – people leave.

Humans are funny things. They can deal with big things, but it is the little things that are the straws that break the camel’s back. It is the little things that change behaviour.

What are the small things in your business that are costing you customers? Take stock today and fix just one small thing.

Until next time

Ingrid Cliff

We put your business into words

Heart Harmony – Freelance writer