Do we settle for “just good enough” and “meeting expectations”? Or do we outperform ourselves and amaze the customer?
There are indeed rational arguments why we should merely meet the customer’s expectations and not go the extra mile. It is more costly to give awesome service. It puts an unnecessary pressure on the service delivery organization.
And while advocates of such rationale keep praising mediocrity, the amazing suppliers keep impressing customers and gaining market share.
Delivery contacts or Service Level Agreements should represent a worst case scenario, while the supplier should always strive for better, faster, more amazing. Or someone else will.
And if it seems too hard to keep up with the spoiled customer’s ever increasing expectations, then it is better to talk to the customer about this than forcing them to become less spoiled by delivering mediocre service.
Aim for “just enough” and you’ll miss half the time. Aim for amazing and you may just reach it.
Geir Isene - uncut 
Excellent topic and fit for a vast majority of activities. Sleepy now, promise to come back soon with a comment 🙂
ÅÅååå (slightly annoyed): Geir, After reading this post, should I scratch the plans for Rett IT (Right IT) and start working on a new plan: “Amazing IT”?
Not if Rett means Straight 🙂
Maybe, park the plans and only focus on delivering Right IT to make your customers amazing 🙂
I agree with your post, but honestly, yes, sometimes “better” can be enemy of “good”. “Meeting expectations” can be enough for success, “amazing the customer” and pushing limits can hurt the business in some ways. It depends, of course, there are businesses and businesses, customers and customers. I don’t think “meeting expectations” will arise mediocrity, as long as customers expectations are high.
There should be no substitute for aspiring to deliver amazing service. Settling for “meeting expectations” is merely laziness IMO.
🙂 Agree, but sometimes things can go wrong. 12 years ago I worked in a clinic where everything met “customers expectations” and everybody was happy. Suddenly our manager wished to deliver “amazing service” in order to please customers more than they were. She ordered some wonderful decoration changes in the clinic, but then she realized she don’t have the money. She still continued with something else but finally was worst then before. I think the idea of your post is about attitude, more than material things.
It sure is 🙂
Now we’re on the same radio wave 🙂 Attitude is the most important and the main engine for success.
Ah yes, Geir. The lofty IDEAL! Though jeeez, we both know, (i think) that’s often stretching, the already over-stretched limits of time and/or resources! (And HOW!) But I agree, if you could achieve that standard – ‘amazing’ — you would be hard to beat!
In fact, you could be positively devastating. Potent point Padre!
It’s more than a lofty ideal. It’s a very real aspiration that often come true if one keep at it and keep working on being Antifragile.
Okay, okay Guru! I get that I have work to do! (followed with a retort to you at the speed of light) ..By the way Geir, how’s the new, improved AMAZING 2014 edition of Geir, turning out, my friend? 🙂
It’s turning out amazingly well, my friend. Keep tuned in and you will get to be in the know.
Yesssssireee!…. now thaaaaat’s AMAZING too!
AMAZEMENT is now the flavor of choice!
Can’t wait for the new one! (Antifragile!) yummmeeee!
🙂
Hi Geir, just dropped by to keep in touch and also to give you this link that I think you’ll love! Happy Easter!
Woops! Forgot the link!
http://flowchainsensei.wordpress.com/2012/07/24/what-is-a-mindset/