Don't Expect Any Kudos for Doing Your Job

Copyright 2002 - Liz Weber of Weber Business Services, LLC. Liz speaks, consults, and trains on Leadership Development, Strategic Planning, and Organizational Change.
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Do you provide a good product or service to your customers? Do you ship orders on time? Are your employees well-trained and professional with each other and with your customers? Do you address customer problems as soon as they arise?

If you do all of these things - good. That's your job.

Your customers come to you and pay for your products with the expectation that you will provide a good product at a fair price, deliver it on time, and treat them with respect. They don't anticipate that they'll be over-charged, for an inadequate product that is shipped late, by a rude employee. When they do experience this latter scenario, is it any wonder your customers get upset?

When you review your customer complaints and satisfaction histories, really look at the data from the customers' perspectives. Put yourself in their place. When you eat dinner at a very nice restaurant, you expect to pay a bit more for the food, atmosphere, and for the professionalism of the staff. If all of those expectations are met, you're typically satisfied with your experience. However, if your food was not prepared to your liking and your waiter was rude, you're rightly disappointed. Now, what happens when your entrée is delicious, the atmosphere relaxing, and the waiter - a true professional - offers you a complimentary dessert because he believes your food took a bit too long to prepare? You're surprised and pleased that he is offering you something more than what you expected. Now you're not only satisfied with the restaurant, you're pleased and impressed. You received an additional value.

It's not enough to just do your job. It's not enough to just provide your products and services in a professional manner. Your customers expect that, so you can't expect any kudos from them if you simply do what's expected. However, you will deserve and you will start to receive compliments from customers, when you start doing more than just your job. Start looking at your services from your customer's perspective and identify: "What little thing can we do or offer them that will add value to their experience with us?" Think of things that are inexpensive and not time-consuming - just nice thoughtful acts of professionalism.

Once you start doing the little things, you'll start hearing the kudos you deserve.