Tag: cost of poor quality

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Is your small business dying? One dead giveaway that you’ve got it all wrong

(Copyright © 2015 by Chesney Bradshaw, all rights reserved)
(Copyright © 2015 by Chesney Bradshaw, all rights reserved)

Some time back in the early morning I wanted to buy magazines at a stationery and assorted non-foods and gifts store in a large shopping centre. It was 9 AM and the store was still closed. I waited together with a small group of other potential customers for the doors of the store to open. Staff were in the store as well as security but there was no sign that anyone was going to open the shop. After about 15 minutes I gave up as did almost all the other potential customers.

This flagrant disregard of customers was a worrying sign. The same chain of stores had a few years back gone into near bankruptcy and fortunately had been pulled back from the brink of disaster. Now one wondered what was going to happen next. Continue reading “Is your small business dying? One dead giveaway that you’ve got it all wrong”

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The dark side of supplier relationships

Welcome home. Now you die.
(Photo credit: ? spunkinator)

Some time back I moved into a new house and there was a snaglist of about 20 items that needed fixing in the place. I was able to get hold of a handyman who had been in the business for a few years because he had been retrenched early from a government bank. This repairman got stuck in and did the repairs and minor renovations very well.

Afterwards he completed a whole lot more repairs and renovations. But unfortunately a friend of his died and he got such a fright that he decided to drop all the handywork and go on an extended one-year holiday. When he came back from his travels, he was no longer interested in repair and renovation work because he wanted to life to the full.

That’s an example of a outstanding supplier who went way beyond the norm and delivered quality that is seldom seen from home suppliers. He was so superb that you wanted to give more and more work. There were no comebacks. No mumbles about payment. In fact, he made sure that you were 100% satisfied with his work before he presented you with an invoice. He worked on the repair and renovation jobs quickly and left absolutely no mess. All round it was an extremely pleasant experience. Continue reading “The dark side of supplier relationships”

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Poor cell phone service providers bad for business

English: Cell phone tower cleverly disguised t...
Is there any connection? (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This morning my cell phone internet connection went down. I called MTN, a giant network carrier, but could not get hold of anyone despite three calls.

My first call to their 808 number was 3 minutes and forty one seconds with no one answering. The second call I placed lasted 8 minutes and forty one seconds. I could not wait any longer because I had to attend a meeting. I made a third call but was cut off by the company. I therefore had to spend about 13 minutes on hold without anyone answering. Eventually after five hours the connection came back … without a word from MTN. Continue reading “Poor cell phone service providers bad for business”