Following on from yesterday by continuing the theme of the challenges facing small businesses, today we look at the poor level of service sometimes given to small companies by firms offering professional services. Everyone’s a consumer at some level, and as Robert Craven argues, SMEs should be valued customers just as much as anyone else:
I run a consulting company that employs between seven and ten employees depending on the time of year and state of the economy.
My professional advisers – accountant, lawyer, architect, financial adviser – are very important to me. Many run their own businesses, just like me. But for whatever reason, they often don’t think of themselves as being a small business. And that can cause problems for people like me. So what is it that I want my advisers to be able to do? First and foremost, I want my adviser to understand me.
Show an interest in me
From where I stand, I am totally unique. No-one else has the same specific problems that I have and no-one else has the same worries and concerns. When I am going to talk about money and my business I want the other person to have a real interest in me and my aspirations.
Second, I want my adviser to understand the needs of a small business. I want them to really understand (or at least be able to empathise with) just how brilliantly skilful I must have been to grow my business despite all the odds!
Business is not simply about money. Business is about people; employing and motivating people, getting people to buy from you and finding people to buy from. Business is about sales and marketing and about delivering your service or product.
I don’t expect an adviser to understand everything about small businesses, but a decent rudimentary
understanding is not unreasonable. Most businesses are fairly simple – understand how a business works, not in theory but in reality – that’s what I want my adviser to be able to do.
Third, I want my adviser to understand my business. I have specific problems – problems that are specific to my industry, to my market and to the way that I run my business.
The adviser should know this and be able to assist with specific industry-related support – often, a bit of research would do no harm!
Swift action
Fourth, I want swift action. The systems used by most competing advisers appear to be relatively similar, so I will accept whatever calculations or recommendations are made.
What I cannot accept are the intolerable delays that sometimes seem to occur. I want swift action, answers delivered when promised or, if all else fails, to be offered a date when work will be completed. A little courtesy is all that I ask.
Fifth, I want to know what I am paying for and I want to know how much I am going to pay. If an accountant or lawyer charges by the hour, then they are incentivised to work slowly. Other professional service firms (architects, dentists, doctors) work to a price, so what’s the problem? Surely fixed price agreements would incentivise them to work more efficiently.
What I want is an adviser that understands me, understands my business, gives me decisions when promised and explains how they charge. Not much to ask, surely!
The above article originally appeared in the October 2007 edition of Better Business magazine
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on Wednesday, December 5th, 2007 at 10:19 am and is filed under Customer Satisfaction, SMEs.
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January 2nd, 2008 at 11:59 am
[...] Professional Services and Valuing the Customer [...]
June 17th, 2009 at 1:58 pm
LArger companies showing a lack of respect for larger companies is inexcusable. Many smaller organisations are currently suffering due to larger organisations stalling on payments (there are even B2B credit rating service adverts now TV at peak times). Based on the current level of rising unemployment as a result of small businesses ceasing trading, I think the bigger fish need to rethink their opinions of the importance of SMEs to the economy.