The Secret of how to deliver the best quality and service at the lowest prices:
You can’t.
Yet, so many business owners try. I’ve tried, you’ve tried or maybe you are still trying.
As an example, I’ve stayed in a lot of hotels. You probably have, too. They’ve ranged from discount national chains to luxurious and pricey Ritz-Carltons. And, I’ve never gotten Ritz-Carlton accommodations and service at a budget hotel. But, I didn’t expect to get it either. In the hotel industry and other industries, consumers have reasonable expectations for quality and service in consideration of the price charged.
That’s not always the case in the horse industry. Sometimes, the customer is not educated in the ranges of quality and service offered and makes no evaluation of the fairness of price because she has no experience to judge by.
As a person in business, you want to deliver the best boarding care, the best lesson program or the best training program at a price that is affordable to everyone. After all, you consider many of your customers as your friends and want to give them a break.
But you want the impossible. It defies logic to try to deliver top quality product (think boarding, lessons, training) and outstanding customer service at discount rates.
Because the relationship between the three factors: quality, service and price is established as a law of business. You can have two out of the three, but not all three.
You can provide the best quality and the best service but not at the “best” or lowest price. When you offer low price, it is delivered only with either okay service or okay quality; there simply isn’t enough margin in the sale to deliver any more than that. For example:
The discount boarding barn might have to skimp on bedding or hay quality to stay in business,
The $20.00 a session riding instructor starts her riding lessons 40 minutes late because her disrespecting students value her time as if she is a twenty dollar riding instructor or,
The owner of a “one month training miracle” horse finds her horse canters on command, but seldom on the correct lead.
If your business profits are skinny, consider if you are attempting to deliver the highest level services at the lowest prices.
If that is the case and you want to bring about change, your two options are:
1. Reduce your level of service to match value and price.
2. Increase your fees to a level appropriate for the service you offer.
Looks simple in writing, doesn’t it? So do something about it!
But wait, I forgot! There is a third choice. That is to do nothing and struggle with the finances of your business in a battle you cannot win.