Regaining Trust

This is a difficult post to write. By writing it I admit that over a period of months I let down one of my longest standing customers and a friend (I will call him Fred). I did. There I have that out of the way.

Several months ago I had committed to Fred that I would get a series of modifications made to his ProofPass.com server. I got busy, we all do and it’s an excuse. I had some personal problems, we all do it’s an excuse. I had to move, most people do several times in their life, and it’s an excuse.

I did not make sure the changes happened on time. I did not manage the project and that’s my job once I make a sale. There, no more excuses.

About a month ago I realized the gravity of the situation. My friend Fred was going to leave ColorMetrix after a decade of being a customer. A decade! We have only been in business a little over 13 years. I got my stuff together and I got busy. I made Fred’s project a significant priority in my daily schedule. I worked the better part of the 4th of July weekend to make sure I understood his problems with ProofPass.com.

Next, I made a snap decision that to retain Fred as a customer I needed to follow my own advice and show up. Fred is a plane ride followed by a significant drive away from me. This was not a small decision but it was the right one and the only one.

My business partner Mike and our crack web developer Tyler both lost more than a little sleep to make sure Fred was satisfied. It was my project and I managed it but it would have never happened without the two of them. They trusted me that this was important and had to be done now even though we have another large project that really needs all our attention every day.

I spent the entire day on-site at Fred’s facility. I delivered the goods. I trained, I explained, and most importantly I listened to what Fred still needs. His remaining needs will be fulfilled and in a timely fashion. Fred appreciated the effort. He showed me that trust can be regained one step at a time.

The Challenge: Are you one of my customers like Fred? Do you feel I have let you down and that you can no longer trust me? Be like Fred, and believe you can. Give me a shot, I will not disappoint you.