A basic fundamental to our human make-up is to have relationships with other people. An isolated man lives no life at all, we're taught at an early age in Sunday school. Why is it that this basic principal of survival is so difficult to take to the workplace? It's not as important in our professional life to establish relationships - it's more important!
If you own a small regional company and are successful, my money is that this principal is fundamental to you as well. You're dropping by your customer's business for no other reason than to have a cup of coffee and say hello. You donate to his favorite charities for the sole reason that they're his favorite charities. You buy Girl Scout cookies from his daughter. He might even be your partner in a local golf tournament, if you're lucky. You probably know all of his key management personnel by their first name and greet them every time you see them.
Prior to the technology boom periods of the '80s and '90s, this was the backbone of how business was done. Relationships built businesses. To see how far this goes back in our industry, look around. How many operators today got their start by placing machines in a friend or relative's business establishment? I remember, as a kid, hanging around my father's office. I didn't think much of it then, but in hindsight I am amazed how many people, customers and friends, dropped by to say hi. Every day, someone different was in my father's office. A few low-lifes were hanging around looking for a one-way loan under false pretenses, but that's another article. Overall, my father was great at building relationships. And he was very sincere. The line between business relationships and personal relationships was by choice a blurred line. He genuinely enjoyed being around his customers. There wasn't a customer, or supplier, that my father didn't know well. Some of the by-products of this are that he had - and still does have to this day - a very satisfying and fulfilling career.
That is, he had fun all along the way. He hasn't owned Chilton Vending for five years now, and he has stayed in touch with the majority of his customers. He calls them and they call him. The business relationships transcended into personal relationships. One of my favorite principals is that knowing we all work 45+ hours per week, which is more time than most all of us spend with our families (sad but true), what's wrong with making some business friends along the way? It adds to the fulfillment of your job, and it is good business.
Opponents to this theory will tell you that they work their butts off and give the best service and that's all they need to do. Good for them. My goal is to exceed your levels of performance at every level. There is absolutely no substitution for performance at the street level. However, if all things are equal, and I'm the one the customer calls for dinner functions, I like my competitive chances against you.
I almost went an entire article without talking about Wal-Mart. Almost. Wal-Mart has a reputation for being the toughest competitor on the planet. When I tell new acquaintances that I am a supplier for Wal-Mart, and spend a great deal of my time in Bentonville, Ark., at the company headquarters, I generally get an outpouring of sympathy. Poor guy. Wal-Mart's reputation is out there. Well-earned, I might add. You know what dominated two recent presentations by senior management personnel I've attended at Wal-Mart? Building relationships with your Wal-Mart store managers is the most important single thing you can do to further your business interests. Know your store managers. Attend any store meeting you can. You will get far better results if you know the manager, and he knows you. Chances are if my kiddie ride earns a similar amount to your video game, and we're both fighting for space, but I know the manager, I will get the premium space and you will be placed down the hall, south of the pay phone.
This goes for any customer you have. In a previous career, I worked for a beer distributorship. This is a cutthroat industry if there ever was one. One night per week every one from the receptionist to the drivers to the owner of the distributorship had Coors Night at Joe's Bar and Grill. A different establishment every week. They might not even sell Coors at the bar, but we wanted to. The owner bought beer for everyone in the bar. Customers would actually lobby for their bar to be the chosen one that week. It was great for business. It built relationships and showed appreciation. It worked. (Only problem was that the divorce rate in that industry is way beyond the norm. Some of the employees built one too many relationships. Otherwise, it's good business.)
I think there is a good lesson to be learned from how some very great people built businesses in the past century. Perform, yes. Be one that they can count on. Be the innovator in your industry, absolutely. Are you going to invite your entire route over for Christmas dinner? Not unless it's a very small route and you have a very understanding wife. Go out of your way to get to know the customers. If your company is large, train your managers, train your route drivers, and train your receptionist. This is good business. In Kansas, I used to periodically hand a driver a list of all his locations. He was asked to write down from memory the name of the manager at every stop. If he couldn't name but a few, I had the wrong guy.
In the interest of getting back to basics, maybe the next question you
should be asking your customer is, "Would you like that coffee black
or with cream and sugar?"