Has this happened to you?
I just had a heater guy come to check the heat unit at my place.
Out of the blue he says something political. He assumed I thought like he did. Assumptions are dangerous and usually wrong. Especially when you are at someones HOME.
I didn't say anything but it really made me mad. A business person should NEVER inject a political statement while on a trade call. Bad form. I won't say who it was, but I won't use them again for that reason. It's bad enough to see TV news injecting slanted politics.
You may not believe this BUT i keep my business and politics SEPARATE.
Global American Values is my political side. It's about making America BETTER and SMARTER.
Few of my Armor Glass customers know my view or that i have written a book or had a bunch of incredible global adventures few ever dream of.
Why? Because the focus is THE CLIENT, not me, or the rep. If I go to someone's home and started going off on how wonderful and clever I am, they would be right to wonder "who the hell is this guy?" LOL. I have seen reps do that so I have to remind them NOT to go there.
I have a CODE OF CONDUCT for my company reps and installers. Political debates on the job are off limits! If a customer makes a political statement, they are to either keep quiet --even or agree with them (the memo says they can go throw up outside later but don't get into a debate with a customer on politics!) An argument is ground for termination immediately.
I devised the code because of an experience a few years ago not long after I started Armor Glass. I had one installer (and only one and he's gone now) who actually got into a debate with a client while he was installing our security film on the man's house down in the (Rio Grande) valley. The client never mentioned it to me --the installer was dumb enough to say to me: "That guy doesn't understand politics." That steamed me.
I told him that clients aren't paying us to hear his Effing political opinions! He (or she) is supposed to be focused on doing a top job not debating a client who is paying us and will refer people if you aren't being an ass and making them mad. So I wrote the Armor Glass Code of Conduct.
Same goes for my Sales Reps - NO politics allowed. I won't even let them put a bumper sticker on when representing us. Some people will like a sticker but it just makes half of the people mad. That's DUMB for a business.
Ironically, what I do protects the butts of people with whom I don't agree with politically (as well as those I do, like the client in the valley.) In this business the "fear" people (the R's) are my best clients, usually upper income. To their credit, none of them have really mentioned politics to me, primarily because they are focused on personal security.
But it is IRONIC that it is a progressive liberal that is providing the security they are using for protection. Even MORE IRONIC: the conservatives in competing businesses aren't providing the quality stuff this progressive does.
Instead of offering the same quality, most of the conservative guys come in and sell the clients discounted cheap crap --like worthless solar film that doesn't provide breach protection from a burglar or hurricane force winds when you live in a burglar/hurricane zone. They undercut us by 10%-20% by offering something half as good. Instead of getting security film, they get cheap stuff that will fail. How is that good? The customer doesn't even know it - film looks the same once its on the window.
Frankly, they offer cheap alternatives to grab peoples' money - like selling you a 2 ply tire but promising it to be "just as good" as a 4 ply tire. Yeah...and the person thinks he or she is saving the money when they never got what they wanted. They got cheated. I don't play that game. I provide quality of material and personnel. period. No games.
I have a Code of Conduct for my company because I want a brand that says first class -- without politics involved or muddying the water.
My personal views are here, NOT on my Armor Glass blog...
As it should be...agree?
I just had a heater guy come to check the heat unit at my place.
Out of the blue he says something political. He assumed I thought like he did. Assumptions are dangerous and usually wrong. Especially when you are at someones HOME.
I didn't say anything but it really made me mad. A business person should NEVER inject a political statement while on a trade call. Bad form. I won't say who it was, but I won't use them again for that reason. It's bad enough to see TV news injecting slanted politics.
You may not believe this BUT i keep my business and politics SEPARATE.
Global American Values is my political side. It's about making America BETTER and SMARTER.
Few of my Armor Glass customers know my view or that i have written a book or had a bunch of incredible global adventures few ever dream of.
Why? Because the focus is THE CLIENT, not me, or the rep. If I go to someone's home and started going off on how wonderful and clever I am, they would be right to wonder "who the hell is this guy?" LOL. I have seen reps do that so I have to remind them NOT to go there.
I have a CODE OF CONDUCT for my company reps and installers. Political debates on the job are off limits! If a customer makes a political statement, they are to either keep quiet --even or agree with them (the memo says they can go throw up outside later but don't get into a debate with a customer on politics!) An argument is ground for termination immediately.
I devised the code because of an experience a few years ago not long after I started Armor Glass. I had one installer (and only one and he's gone now) who actually got into a debate with a client while he was installing our security film on the man's house down in the (Rio Grande) valley. The client never mentioned it to me --the installer was dumb enough to say to me: "That guy doesn't understand politics." That steamed me.
I told him that clients aren't paying us to hear his Effing political opinions! He (or she) is supposed to be focused on doing a top job not debating a client who is paying us and will refer people if you aren't being an ass and making them mad. So I wrote the Armor Glass Code of Conduct.
Same goes for my Sales Reps - NO politics allowed. I won't even let them put a bumper sticker on when representing us. Some people will like a sticker but it just makes half of the people mad. That's DUMB for a business.
Ironically, what I do protects the butts of people with whom I don't agree with politically (as well as those I do, like the client in the valley.) In this business the "fear" people (the R's) are my best clients, usually upper income. To their credit, none of them have really mentioned politics to me, primarily because they are focused on personal security.
But it is IRONIC that it is a progressive liberal that is providing the security they are using for protection. Even MORE IRONIC: the conservatives in competing businesses aren't providing the quality stuff this progressive does.
Instead of offering the same quality, most of the conservative guys come in and sell the clients discounted cheap crap --like worthless solar film that doesn't provide breach protection from a burglar or hurricane force winds when you live in a burglar/hurricane zone. They undercut us by 10%-20% by offering something half as good. Instead of getting security film, they get cheap stuff that will fail. How is that good? The customer doesn't even know it - film looks the same once its on the window.
Frankly, they offer cheap alternatives to grab peoples' money - like selling you a 2 ply tire but promising it to be "just as good" as a 4 ply tire. Yeah...and the person thinks he or she is saving the money when they never got what they wanted. They got cheated. I don't play that game. I provide quality of material and personnel. period. No games.
I have a Code of Conduct for my company because I want a brand that says first class -- without politics involved or muddying the water.
My personal views are here, NOT on my Armor Glass blog...
As it should be...agree?
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