Making Allies of Your Customers, Vendors, and Community

Dinner among the two-by-fours

A local lumber company has been in business for nearly a century. Considering that fewer than half of all businesses survive their first four years, this is a matter of special pride. At their entrance is a huge cross-section of a redwood tree, adorned with tabs marking significant historical events, including: "Birth of George Washington," "Declaration of Independence," "Gold discovered in California," and, approaching the bark: "We opened."

Inside the foyer you're again reminded of the company's, uh, roots. Brochures tell their story. The walls display photos of the founders, the original location, and the successive general managers. You see how the company has matured with the community.

The company calls itself "the place where contractors shop," and they make the point with an exclusive contractors' entrance, preferred "in-yard" parking, a fully staffed contractors' counter (with space to spread out plans), a shelf of code books, computer terminals for estimating bids, and specialists available for all trades.

Of course, none of this would be worth a bag of 10-penny nails without the commitment to make it work.

One such example is the monthly after-hours employee "university," where pizza's served, overtime is paid, and training is provided to staff on the fine points of selling products that meet contractors' needs.

Another demonstration of the company's commitment is its "Contractors' Appreciation Night." No hot dog and balloon affair, this is an annual feast for the company's most favored customers, vendors, and all employees. The main lumber shed is transformed into a banquet hall with white-linen tables, votive candles, china, and silver settings. The catering staff stands at attention near the plywood bins. The General Manager offers a warm welcome and a simple thank-you for the past year's loyalty - an elegant reminder that this night, and always, they're here to serve.

Forging an alliance

One of our clients owns a one-person marketing service. She manages promotional projects for other small businesses, and her reputation is based on her ability to support a client through the launching of a new product, a new store, a branding change, or a seasonal promotion. She helps her client realize an idea through her network of graphic artists, photographers, copywriters, and printers.

She told me her single greatest challenge used to be her dependency on these vendors - an artist who misses a deadline or a printer who uses the wrong paper. At first she felt that she had no control, and was at their mercy. But she came to view them as her employees, just as if they were clocking in at her office.

Last year, she began inviting each of her vendors out to lunch. At these lunches, she told them her story. She discussed her strategic goals and her passion for her business. She explained her devotion to clients, and her desire to work with people who shared this devotion. This resonated with many, and to those people only she proposed an alliance, based on an agreement that they'd approach this relationship with the same dedication to excellence she promised her clients.

Six months later, a printer's mistake was discovered on deadline day. The printer, without prompting, called her client, apologized for the error, and worked through the night to deliver the corrected run on time at no extra cost.

An alliance was forged, a reputation preserved, a promise maintained, and a relationship between business, customers, vendors, and community was strengthened.

When you tell your story - whether to customers, employees, vendors, or community organizations - some will get excited, some will not. Work only with those who do.

Check List:

• Tell your story with passion and conviction.
• Reinforce it with consistent action.
• Waste no time on those who won't hear you.
• Forge alliances for collective excellence.