How Good Are You?

When I was in business school there were many discussions about benchmarking. The idea was that you took a look at the best company in your industry and used them as the basis for achieving a level of excellence. If Company A provided the best customer service in your industry, then they would be the benchmark for customer service.

Sorry Professor’s, but you got it wrong.

Let’s say you work in insurance and one of your agents is at a cocktail party with some friends and the topic turns to customer service. Are you confident that, when asked, your agent will say that your company provides the best customer service? Or will they have another answer, like Barnes & Noble, or Google, or the carwash down the street? Today, benchmarks go way beyond your particular industry. Your competition is everywhere. If you want your story to be told and spread, you compete with everybody.

Customers have all the power. They know that they can get any product at any time. You simply have to be better. This is especially true when managing your channel relationships. They have choices, so your story (which includes the WHOLE experience) must be extraordinary and beyond what is “expected” in your industry, because they will compare you to everyone.