Comments on Transparency, Service and Small Companies

This is a bit off-topic but I’ll tie this together, quickly. Anyway, my husband’s car was hit, last week, and it’s now in the shop. The insurance company had us take it to a small, local shop.

Normally, we might have driven a couple towns away to take it to the dealer, which is a good bit larger than than this little shop. We took it to the dealer because, when we went to initially look for services for the car, it’s easy to look at the dealer web-site and find a place to take it.

Here’s what great about the little shop:

1. They give us a ride so we can easily drop-off and pick-up the car, which our dealer does not do nor do they have loaners.
2. The little shop, while obviously busy, made sure they gave us quick service. The large shop doesn’t always try that hard to get us fast estimates when they’re busy.
3. As we drive by, we can actually see the car in the shop to see the progress, where the dealer is actually not just out of our way to do that, but too big to see inside like that.

Here’s where I tie this in:

1. Small companies give you the extras. Small companies like mine are willing to go the extra mile to give projects the extras that they need. We’re not tied to getting approval for this so we can just offer it right up if we know we can do it.
2. You’re special. To a small company like mine, every customer is special. If you feel like you’re being treated like a nameless, faceless cog, a small company is more likely to make you feel like you are getting something for your money, like you’re not just a bother to us.
3. Transparency. Small companies like mine can easily show and tell you what they’re doing for you. It’s like you can see right in. If you want to know what the status is or what’s happening going forward, there aren’t “channels to go through” to do this. Just ask and you’ll find out. In the cases where I don’t know, those of you who know me know you can count on me to be honest about that.

Just like the little shop, the smaller consulting company might take a little more of a search on your part but you’ll find that extra search worthwhile. Customers who do business with me, for example, are happy that they did this. Now, while I can’t guarantee that every small company will be as superior as mine, think of it this way: most of the small companies are founded by people who are experts in their field. While some never make the transition from technical person to business owner, in order to service their customers properly, quite a few of them do and are worth seeking.

Gloria Metrick
GeoMetrick Enterprises
http://www.GeoMetrick.com/