Customer Satisfaction May Be the Wrong Target
Customer satisfaction has been treated like the golden calf of business for years. Companies send surveys, collect ratings, measure smiley faces, and proudly announce that 87% of their customers are “satisfied.” Wonderful. That and five dollars might get you a coffee, assuming your satisfied customer does not buy it from someone else. Because here is […]
The New Business Killer: Obscurity
The biggest problem most small businesses face today is not poor service, weak products, or lack of effort. It is obscurity. A business can be excellent and still be invisible. And in today’s marketplace, invisible businesses do not win. The companies that thrive are often not the ones with the best product or service, but […]
Standing Out in a Crowded Market
Independent retailers often struggle to survive against big-box chains. A boutique outdoor gear shop faced this exact battle. Competing on price was a losing game, and matching inventory was impossible. So they asked the Market-Focused Planning question: Why would a customer choose us? The answer wasn’t “more products” or “lower prices.” Instead, it was community […]