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It is often heard that those with an actual monopoly or a de facto monopoly give bad service as there is no motivation to do anything else to improve the life of the customer. As, after all, the customer will come anyway.
Whether it be a bus company, telephone company, or the one company who can only repair brand XYZ product in your near area the results are sadly often the same. This can happen in the smallest of towns a long away from the capital or in the bustling metropolis. At least in the capital there is sometimes a choice of supplier. Those who choose not to live in the capital region or in a large population centre are not always so lucky!
One could think that there would be more "local pressures" to get things right, as someone invariably knows somebody who knows somebody who should be able to get things done. But local pressures, group factions and perceived loyalties can lay deep. There can often be a perceived pressure not to rock the boat, because you know somebody who knows somebody who knows somebody who might not be doing their best and that could have social, political or even business consequences back sometime in the future.
In many societies people will not even complain directly. It is not in their culture. They may complain to their family and friends, and if asked "is everything ok?" they may reply yes, even when it is not, to save face and risk upsetting the invisible boat with the aforementioned consequence. So even if the company is customer focussed, and not all are, how could they even know of a problem and work on fixing it!
Yet I am aware of many companies who do go the extra mile for their customers. Not because of perceived extra competition in their area or the threat of it. One such company that springs to mind is in the "HVAC" marketplace. There are other companies who can provide HVAC products but this company has an effective de facto monopoly, or at the very least probably the largest market share by a mile, due to their broad knowledge, good customer service and a willingness to get the job done. From the person who goes around to fix a problem up to the top boss, customer focus and satisfaction is the key. Sure, things can and do go wrong, but the company is quick to try and fix matters. Without a fight from the customer.
But compare this to another company I am aware of in the telecommunications field. Even with the growth of mobile communications there are just some things that, so far, cannot be replaced by a mobile. Yet the customer service is quite variable. Customers often have to chase and chase the office bound staff to get things done. And the bosses don't seem to give a damn to complaints. In this instance I am aware of many companies who have took away what business they can since they cannot rely on this company in any meaningful way, leaving perhaps only the immovable services remaining to chance. This is a shame as many want to support local companies if they can and invariably the person who goes around to actually do the work is hard working, dedicated and wants to do the best they can, they are invariably hampered along the way by their "office colleagues" who try to talk the talk and yet won't even try to walk the walk.
Often the local "monopoly" tries to branch out into other areas. Perhaps senior management have been on a course or read a management self-help book and want to "broaden their non-core business through corporate diversification". Sometimes they can leverage their reputation, name and resources and have some success, even at the expense of another. Although with the same weak, disinterested management problems can occur and this can even lead to legal action being taken against the company due to their handling of matters. Of course, maybe they hope that most people won't complain in any case and even those who do complain won't take matters further. Experience has told them that most people just run out of energy or assume that nothing else can be done.
There are many cultural, business and strategic changes that can be easily implemented to help both the customer and the company alike. It need not cost a lot of money to implement but it first needs change at the top. Ingram can assist with this. Hard lessons and harsh words may need to be said and a few egos pricked at the start but it truly can benefit everybody. Yet, those who have the problem and need the help the most will probably never recognise that they need help. And who will tell them directly to their faces and manage to force through the need for change. It is a brave person who says "I might need help" and want to change. There is nothing wrong in making a good thing even better. |
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