Small Business Marketing Tip #1: A Personal Story About Exceeding Expections

In Florida, home pest control really is a pre-requisite.When I returned home that day, I glanced at the bill.
When I first bought my home it was a few years old.The bill detailed the service - including the fact that he
After living here for a few months, I received a callnot only sprayed in the garage, but baited. He noted
from a pest control company. They explained thatthat he swabbed the eaves for webs. And he noted
they had been servicing the house previously, andthat he gave a 16 liter treatment of Termidor.
would like to continue - I just needed to take over theTermidor? I didn't know they did that too! Wow! I've
bill.been meaning to call someone to do preventative
I fought it...explaining that I saw no pests, so didn'ttreatment for termites - I didn't know I've had that
understand why I needed to pay them. The guy wiselycovered all this time.
explained that the reason I didn't have a pest problemAnyway, I was so pleased that I filled out the
was because they had been treating the housecomment form with excellent marks and fired it back.
heretofore - and if I would like to continue having aThen, to my surprise, I checked my voicemail tonight
pest free home, I should keep the service going.and there was a message from the company
Good point. Come on out.following up on the service - making sure everything
That was 2 years ago. I never hear anything fromwas fine.
them - except every 2 months a bill appears on myMan...these folks are getting serious.
door. It's easy to forget about them - and start toHere's the take away. First of all, the value of their
wonder why your paying that bill.service went up 3 fold for me - and they secured my
Well, the other day I got a knock on my door. It wasbusiness for at least another year.
Dave from the pest company. "Mr. Miller, just checkingSecond, maybe they've been doing this all along - but
to see if you're having any pest problems."never caught my attention.
"Hmm...I did have a small problem in the garage, but thatThat could be a critical point for your small business.
was because I had a small leak - I think I took care ofAre you exceeding expectations? More importantly,
it."do your customers know about it? Are they so busy
"Well, I'll take a look..."that they just pay your bill without noticing what you do
Fine.for them?
About 15 minutes later, as I'm pulling out of my driveHow could you highlight the excellent work you do?
way to head to the office, I notice the guy using a mopThese could be important questions to ask of yourself.
like tool to swab away cobwebs from under the soffitI would recommend detailing the steps you take and
and eaves.providing that list to your clients - to be sure they fully
"Wow! I didn't know they did that!"understand the effort you make.