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Why No One Pays Extra For Rudeness - Building Relationship Capital
Everyone is always focusing on capital when they are discussing business. They need venture capital to get started. They need additional capital to keep going. What they are generally discussing, what they commonly are referring to is the financial aspect of business, the cash. What they often forget to mention, or they forget to factor in is relationship capital.
Regardless of what product you are selling, what service you are marketing, you are going to be selling to relationships. You may never see a single customer's face and you may never even hear their voices. You may only do your business online over the computer. Who exactly do you think is placing the order at the other end? You don't think that the computer has developed independent thinking and needs, do you?
Building relationship capital should be the easiest aspect of your business venture. It should be far easier to treat everyone with dignity and respect than it would be to get venture capital from reluctant investors, but still somehow this is the sticking point. Imagine for a moment, a business person; Susan. Susan has given a really stellar presentation on what she predicts will be a million dollar seller in its first year. The investors are impressed by the presentation and give her the venture capital to go forth with the idea. It is a good product after all, the need is there and the market is wide open for exploring. But, each of the investors has a reservation, not about the product, but about Susan herself. She seems cold, unemotional and disconnected somehow. After the presentation was over, the others all agreed to go out for a meal to celebrate. Susan simply packed her charts and graphs and left.
A month goes by and the numbers for this new product are lousy. The investors are concerned so they do some investigating. What they find is that Susan cannot keep employees because she is robotic at best- and impossible to deal with when she is frustrated. Because Susan's employees have such a high turnover rate in nearly every department, there are poorly trained and working positions that are not right for them. Desperate for help, Susan has taken to just hiring whoever shows up without an interview. No one who is worth having will stay in this horribly mismanaged company.
Customers are frustrated because the untrained staff lose calls, or worse do not answer them. Orders are being canceled, products are being returned. The company that Susan is running is losing money hand over fist. The investors call an emergency meeting and discuss their options. Susan is brought in and given the facts. Reluctantly, she agrees to step down and give the day to day operations over to her second in command, Lisa. Lisa does not have a high degree from a fancy college like Susan does. What she does have is relationship capital. She is likable and funny, but hardworking and dedicated. Within a month, most of the open positions are filled with qualified, competent workers. In two months, the flow of orders and sales is at the level of its estimated potential. The workers are well trained and happy. They are more than willing to give good customer service. Lisa keeps things running with good business sense and the intangible business assets that they do not teach in any MBA program in the world. Sometimes in business, just as in life, either you've got it, or you don't. Nurture and cultivate your relationships and your business will flourish.
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