By Spider Johnk

A few weeks ago, the lights went out at the Johnk country estate. While this is unusual, there is a process all family members know and put into action when it does happen. Light a candle, go to the fridge, and read the rural electric hotline number off the magnet that sticks to the fridge door. Then we call.

One of two things happens next.

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If the blackout is in a small neighborhood geographically, you get a representative who will ask your meter number and give you a response that they have someone on it, or since you might be the first to report it, they will have someone on it right away. Implied promise #1.

The other response you might get is if the blackout is widespread, there will be a recording that says something to the effect that there is a widespread outage and they have a team on it, and while they don’t have enough information to give a time for power to be restored, they are doing everything they can. Implied promise #2.

After listening to these responses, some cynics might hear, “check’s in the mail.” But I am here to tell you it never ceases to amaze me that these guys always deliver.

They always under-promise, and most of the time, over-deliver. And at the least, keep their promise without fail. The stories about these guys go on and on. Blizzards come and power poles snap off a dozen at a time. These guys go out and do the impossible in record time, under unbearable weather conditions, and before we expect it, the lights are on, we are staying warm and able to watch the latest reality show after a nice hot dinner. Unreal. No set promise but a whole lot of delivery.

I believe most us are people pleasers, and therefore we promise things sometimes just to make the customer happy. And unfortunately, we do so without following a process that would help ensure success. Like checking with co-workers who actually have to do the work that fulfills the promise made. So the scenario then goes something like this: you promise the client that a project will be ready by Monday. You check with your team and find out that they have another project scheduled that is equally important and has the same deadline. Now you make a decision. One of the projects will be sidelined or nothing will be sidelined, and the team will have to double shift to accomplish everything promised. Either way makes you an idiot, and someone ends up using your name in a disparaging manner. A simple call or inquiry back to the team once the client need was identified could have avoided the problem.

But what is it that makes that so difficult to understand and follow? Why do we feel compelled to promise something we are unsure can be done?

We don’t want to disappoint the customer. We want to impress with our capability. We want to show our commitment to customer service. But that’s where we fall down.

If we really want to showcase that customer service, we would do the things that ensure service success and not risk it over bad planning or process. When a customer asks for something, we should try to accomplish it in steps that make it possible and that the customer is kept aware of.

First: Drilling down on the real need so that everyone understands the scope of the request. Many times this first step is the one that gets only a cursory look at best. Because time is the crunch factor, we say things like “…let’s get the ball rolling, and the information we really need can come later.” Bad move.

Second: Once everyone understands the scope of the project, who are the players that will be involved? Are they up to speed and can they deliver and under what schedule? When that has been detailed, then you can give the customer a timeline.

Third: We usually find that to fulfill on a promise, the client needs to help the process happen. This could happen as an edit or a milestone approval on his/her part. Set that expectation as soon as possible, and put it in the timeline. If we do this and you, the customer, do this, then we can do this, and the project will be completed. But…if we do this and you aren’t available to do that, then we can’t do this, and then the timeline is lost.

Bottom line: The more information that is shared with the people that need to know, then the chances for success increase in direct proportion.

My mom once told me that I should never mention something to my kids that I am not willing to deliver on. The reason, she told me, was that kids hear what their parents say as promises. And they never seem to comprehend the word “maybe.” As in, “Maybe we should go to the Grand Canyon next summer.” What they hear is, “We are going to the Grand Canyon next summer,” and they start packing.

If you tell a customer that the task you need to perform probably, or could, or hopefully, or might be done by Monday, then you have made the promise. While you felt you gave yourself some protection by adding the qualifier of maybe or probably or some other obscurity, there is nothing vague about Monday. We all know what Monday means.

As hard as it seems to do, you need to go with what you know is the best approach: reality.

Promise what you know you can deliver. Seems simple. But you hear your client tell you they need it by Monday. You want to help, but in the end they will only know or really care about whether you did what you said you would do. Anything else will not count but will certainly be remembered.

About the Author

The Partner Channel serves the Microsoft Dynamics Partner community and provides programs, publications and events to help improve Partners’ marketing and business management skills. If you’d like to receive a FREE copy of The Partner Channel Magazine, a quarterly publication for Microsoft Dynamics Partners, visit www.thepartnerchannel.com and create a profile in the upper right hand corner of the Web site. In addition to serving as the President of The Partner Channel, Spider is an advertising and marketing creative director, graphic designer, video producer, director, writer and more. Spider says the reason for this diverse skillset is borne out of necessity. "When you choose a small community to live in, then you learn to be good at many things to survive. Plus it makes it all more interesting."