branding

Clean that ashtray, close the sale

Selling luxury products. Business meetings. Job interviews. Political maneuvering. That first date.

They all have one thing in common - the importance of first impressions.

An example.

I recently met a new luxury products retailer in the high-end automotive marque business in Malaysia. They were building a fantastic showroom. In the meantime, they’d spent a considerable amount of money and time on a temporary oasis for their expensive and very exclusive automobiles.

Now, we’re talking about cars that went for millions of ringgit each (that’s about USD1 = RM3.2 for you number types). These cars epitomize the luxury and speed that high end automobiles stand for.

Racing, fine food, the best people and the most amazing lifestyles were hallmarks of the brand. Unfortunately, cleanliness didn’t seem to be one of their preferred traits if the showroom was anything to go by!

So imagine you’re walking into the showroom where these million ringgit cars are parked…on display in all their shine and glory. You’re ready to buy one. And then, you catch a scent on the air. Cigarettes. Stale cigarettes in an ashtray. An ashtray in a display space for millions of ringgit of cars that hadn’t been cleaned.

Seeing that you start to notice other things … like the loose carpeting. The corners of the car that have fingerprints on it. A less than million ringgit shine on that wonderful example of automotive excellence.

What kind of impression is that going to leave you?

Would you still be quite so ready to make that big purchase there - or are you going to look for an alternative?

After all, if they can’t keep the small things going in their showroom, how will they look after your car and you down the line?

Sometimes we forget that the big things - important as they are - don’t quite make or break a deal as much as the small.

The loose tiles. The misspelled proposal. The less than polished shoes.

Businesses - especially smaller ones - need to pay attention to the details. They need to clean that ashtray.

What experiences have you had where the small things made or broke a deal or meeting?

© 2008 Journeys Through The Line.