"There are two ways of meeting difficulties: you alter the difficulties; or you alter yourself to meet them," ~Writer, Phyllis Bottome.

For those of you that know me, or if you have followed my blogs for a while, you probably know that customer service is a passion of mine. I genuinely believe that if you are servicing others, you should strive to be the best company in the world. As well as want to give the best customer experience and personal support. Why? Because, ideally, you should genuinely care… That should be the culture of a company and what makes it great.

Many vendors and dealers in our industry strive for this. However, it can get hard in times of growth and uncertainty. Growth can be hard – but at the same time, growth is exciting! The challenge in times of growth is to never lose sight of your core mission, your promise of excellent customer service one client at a time.

When expansion becomes the new norm, it is easy to become focused on the “fix what’s broken right now!” Letting other things sit while the fire settles to a smolder, only paying attention again if it sparks. 

I love the quote at the start of this blog, it is probably an attitude we can all learn from. I am sure we are all guilty of getting caught up in reactionary behavior… reacting to the phone calls, the lists, the emails. All the while, missing the bigger picture. Granted, some issues are beyond our control. However, our client's and our customer’s frustrations shouldn’t be. We should not be in a constant state of "Hair on Fire!" response when those calls come in… and we all know which calls those are.

What your customers care most about is feeling important, being communicated with, feeling as they did when you were courting them to win their business… making them think they are valuable to you. You need to remind them every day why they were happy to do business with you and why they chose you. Why you were the best thing ever – and that you still are! 

I find it helps to take a moment before going about the rest of your day to see if you have tasks that have gone untouched. Things that should have been handled and were not. Or that should be updated -- or could just use a little attention. While you are at it, it may be worth checking on some of those older tasks you may have lingering and/or check in on a customer or prospect that you have not spoken to in a while. Remember, a little goodwill goes a long way.

We all get busy with the right now and the next client or customer. Just remember that you would not have that next customer if it were not for the ones you already have.