Mind Your ABC's. Get Rid of the D's

Mind Your ABC's. Get Rid of the D's.

Too many D’s and not enough A's: this is one thing in life that holds many of us back, without our even realizing it. It touches our everyday lives to an amazing degree. Let’s look at some examples in both our business and personal lives.

BUSINESS RELATIONSHIPS:The customer is not always right; the RIGHT customer is always right.

Not all customers are created equally. Some buy a lot from us, respect our opinions, and pay their bills on time. On the other hand, some just really drain us with small orders, constant complaining, and late payments. If you hang around these negative ones (they attach themselves to us), how are you ever going to have the time and energy to deal with the positive ones? I’m sure you can think of five to 10 customers who make your life a misery.

What if . . . ? Yes, what if they didn’t exist? Or, better still, what if they were dealing with your competitors and bringing them down? You would free up capacity that is being badly used and turn it into good capacity.

Replace those 10 baddies with one goodie and you are ahead of the game. First, get rid of the baddies. In case you haven’t figured it out, those are the D’s. Wouldn’t it be fun for you to double the number of baddies that your competitors deal with? It will drive them crazy, and they will lose some of their A customers to you. So, rank your customers A, B, C, & D. If getting rid of your D customers is difficult for you (maybe you don’t like to say no), then set stringent rules for them and insist they must follow them:

· Get their credit card number/ banking instruments before they buy.

· Develop a minimum size order.

· Insist they deal with you by fax or email.

You set the rules. If they don’t leave, they will become better customers. Your A customers are the best ones. So, treat them best. Next come your B’s and then your C’s. You need to set the parameters for A, B, C, and D. If you need help give me a call. Target your marketing activities toward A customers. Find out what delights them and make it part of your culture!

The questions you should ask yourself to help develop your strategies are:

· What can I do to convert my D customers to C, my C to B and my B to A?
· How can I get more A customers?
· What can I do to delight my A customers?

Now look at your suppliers and your employees, and follow the same pattern. You’ll improve the quality of your working life!

PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS:Take control.

What about in your personal life? Are there people who drain you? Take more control and put limits on those relationships. Small changes here will make big differences in the quality of your life. Are you involved in too many volunteer activities? What are the unimportant things that are taking up your time? Freeing up even 15 minutes a day from marginal activities and spending it with your family will have a huge impact on your life. We are constantly reminded of how fragile life is. Don’t wait until it is too late. Sit with your family, share these thoughts and make a new family strategy now. Learn how to delight each other.

"What I do today is important because I am exchanging a day of my life for it."