What sets a company apart, what makes someone choose A over B? Is it Price? Is it calling ahead to schedule the service or is it being able to show up with no advanced notice? Is it experience? Is it nursing things along or fixing anything that looks, sounds or smells like it could be a problem? Is it showing up with donuts and coffee or is it coming off the roof dirty from head to toe?
I like to say the truth is always somewhere in-between. Not the cheapest or the most expensive, but the best value. Asking the customer what will make the service the least disruptive and listening to them when they answer. The way you communicate to put a customer at ease so they feel confident you can get the job done. Sometimes that’s keeping it going and sometimes that's complete replacement. The only way to know what the customer needs is to take time to talk to them, which is just as important as what goes on in the mechanical room.
Last summer I posted a blog thanking our service technicians for the effort they made to take care of our customers. There is no in-between statement there. We did or we did not. Judging from the number of new and renewed contracts I would say we did. Year after year we maintain the same customer base and it also expands. The base is maintained because of the effort of those same technicians servicing the accounts. It expands because of the reputation of those technicians, both service and installation. They lead the apprentices and new to the company technicians by example.
I’m so proud of the people that work for ModernControls I’d love to say I trained them all. But the truth is all I did was hire them and give them the space to be their own person. As for the ones that have been there longer than me I respect them for giving me that space. Our control and mechanical installation technicians are the ones with the most years at ModernControls. I can’t tell you how many times a week part of my interaction with a customer involves questions about an installer. How’s their family, did their son get into that school, do they still have that Mustang? The relationship is strong because the job was done right, not just because they were a nice guy. ModernControls sold a job well done and the technician delivered a job well done. That includes the technician getting to know the customer so he can meet his expectations.
What set ModernControls apart is an owner that recognizes the efforts of the people around him, because he is right there with them. The technicians in turn treat the customers and each other well. It is great company to work for and a great company to work with. On behalf of all the office and sales staff I’d like to thank all the technicians’ both service and installation for their tireless effort. As we head into the summer I want everyone to know were right with them and ready to support them.
