Be Prepared

Be Prepared!

Sound, practical advice isn’t it? Maybe, that's why the Boy Scouts of America chose this phase as their motto.

Every day, I am bombarded by companies telling me I need to be better prepared. The insurance companies say I need more life, health, car, property, and every other type of insurance - to be prepared! Every time I purchase any type of mechanical /electrical item from a car, to a computer, to a refrigerator the retailers and manufactures say I need to purchase an extended warranty / service contract - to be prepared! Not to mention all the companies that want me to invest in my future well-being such as mutual funds, retirement plans, and investment opportunities now we even have prepaid funeral services. All this, just so I can be prepared.

Don’t get me wrong, I do believe in preparing for life. As the old saying goes, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”.

My question is, why do companies spent incredible amounts of their time, money, and resources telling me I need to be prepared, when they are not prepared to serve me, the customer?

These are some life experiences illustrating my point:

Called a business recently (name withheld to protect the guilty) and was placed on hold for about 10 minutes, while their recording repeated “…due to the high call volume we are experiencing …..” Could they not prepare better for this “high call volume”? Maybe, hire more employees?

Called another business and the phone rang 8 times before anyone answered. Why is this company unprepared to answer my phone call within 3 rings?

When I ordered food from a local restaurant, they told me to expect delivery in 20-25 minutes. 45 minutes later the food arrives. When asked, Why the delay? I was told they were short on delivery people. Why not hire more delivery people? Why not have someone else help with deliveries?

Visited a major electronics retailer, where I inquired about purchasing a new stereo. Several surprises arise during my visit. First finding someone to assist me was surprisingly a challenge. Then after finding an employee that works “in that department”, their level of product knowledge was far below mine. Why not prepare the employees with product knowledge? Why not have more staff to serve the customers.

One of my favorite examples of a business not being prepared is:

The car dealership visit:

During his visit to a well known car dealership I watched Bob (not his real name) be transformed from a potential lifetime customer into someone who became the victim of a business unprepared to serve customers. It started when Bob picked out a new car he wanted to test drive. The inexperienced salesperson took over 15 minutes to find the key to the vehicle. (Strike one)Then the new car did not start. (Strike two) After getting the car jump started, they went off for the test ride. Apparently, the salesman forgot to check the fuel gauge. Five minutes later the salesman came walking back to the dealership looking for the gas can. (Strike Three) Needless to say, Bob purchased his new car at another dealership. Why, did this business choose to lose a potential lifetime customer? Why was the salesman not trained properly? Why was the car out of gas? Why was the car’s battery not checked?

In business you need to be either serving the customer or preparing to serve them.

Being prepared has to be a top priority for all companies. It is a choice, a mind-set of the company and their employees. Every company must have a “Be Prepared” mentality to thrive in today’s competitive business environment.
Being prepared does not guarantee customer satisfaction, but being unprepared almost always leaves customers unsatisfied.

Are you prepared to serve your customers?

"In business or in football, it takes a lot of unspectacular preparation to produce spectacular results."
--Roger Staubach, Hall of Fame Football Player