People who come to you for PRICE will leave u for PRICE

Yes. Obvious & TRUE.

Price is the ONLY differentiation your company ofter to the customers?  Think Twice about your business strategy. Today cut throat competition forces many businesses to merely compete on price. However this strategy may get u immediate business but will not take you long way in business. 

Thin margin to get business is riskier than  more margin but less business. Mere volume is without adequate profitability is company on steroids. High on workout and low on proteins. As with high workout muscles break down in our body & without adequate protein it cant be built , similarly with high turnover without adequate margin , business breaks down. Yes unsustainable activities without capability to invest for future sustainable activities like research and innovation or talent attraction and retention.

Secondly most critical are the differential factors that will decide the business volume other than price. What value you can design within your product. We buy branded products by paying premium. What differentiation brand offers ?? Comfort and confidence that product is of reasonable quality, customer service would be good if not outstanding, complaint would be handled professionally and with care, reasonable exchange policy and service centers.   

Therefore when Price  has become a major deciding factor, offering a WOW !!!! factors in your product and service design is very critical to become & remain competitive. Compete on WOW factors, there is not many players there.  Brands like Apple , Virgin , Starbucks, Amazon   { In India unfortunately service excellence and WOW factors are missing from product and service design ( pl share brands which matches best in the world brands in customer experience & service excellence ) } rare yet or hence sustainable. Customer will stay with these brands irrespective of price of their offerings. 

Next time when you get the deal merely on the basis of price, its an ALARM, think inward and check your business strategy and product and service design.  It requires IMMEDIATE attention { & action too} .

Fan-Tas-Tic

Yes that’s the exclamation !!! One uses when delighted by service excellence:

McDonald's at Panvel. We drove in and within 90 seconds we were out with our order fulfilled. 

Order - Payment & Delivery Turnaround Time - 90 Seconds. After Making Payment at Drive Thru Counter we came to Delivery Counter i.e. 15 seconds and he was ready with our packet of delivery.  ( Order, Payment Took 70 seconds ). Total Item = 7. 

Big M visible from distance ,Security at the Gate to guide vehicles, Drive Thru lane, Order and Payment Counter, Delivery Counter, Packaging, Quality of food of course and staff efficiency. All touch pints were well in place to create well deserved WOW!!!

Thinking of Drive Thru Services, Design of entire road map i.e. entry of vehicle to exit, placement of counters, internal processes of design of order, pick up,

packaging and delivery all were DESIGNED.

Unless every customer facing touch points and processes are thoughtfully DESIGNED it will not create Service Excellence WOW!! 

Most of the time entrepreneurs miss out on Customer Facing Design. Factories and Shops are designed meticulously. Spent hours and days on Brand ,Logos,employee uniform. But no investments in employee training, processes which are critical for customer delight, making it easy and quick for CUSTOMER to deal with the company. No Clue.  We have tons of call centers but no thinking on how and what is the convenience for the customer to reach out when in need.  Pressing 10s of buttons before someone speak to u is ridiculous. Every company has website but email link to contact the company is more often than not takes hours to find. It should be on every page and clearly visible so that when the visitors want to take action it’s there. We have internal control audits but no audits on CUSTOMER Friendliness of Business Processes!!!

Uff long way before businesses wakes up and put CUSTOMER at the center stage of their activities & final suggestion to McDonalds’, CUSTOMER in drive thru services eats while travelling so;

1) Tissue paper for hand clean 

2) Waste paper bag to keep all the waste  

3) Wet tissue napkins to freshen up 

Will add to the customer DELIGHT.