What if you could do something in just fifteen minutes a day to improve your business?
What if it cost less than $15 a week?
Would you do it? Or would you think it was too easy?
I'm talking about sending thank-you notes. You don't even have to send a lot of them. Three a day will do the trick. It will have a dramatic impact on your business. And it will have an incredible impact on your attitude.
I learned about this from that Font of All Wisdom, my mother. After the Christmas gifts were opened, she sat us down and we wrote our thank-you notes. After we got a birthday present, she made sure we wrote a thank-you note. When someone did something nice for us, she reminded us to send a thank-you note.
You send some thank-you's in response to something that happens to you. It might be a customer order, or someone who does something nice for you.
I drop off my cleaning at the World Gym where I work out. A couple of weeks ago the cleaners lost part of my order. A young woman at the gym took care of following up for me. She tracked down my clothes and picked them up. I sent her a note. It said, "Thanks for taking care of things."
A client and friend of mine suggested that the Most Beautiful Woman in the World and I see Cirque du Soleil when we were visiting Disney World. We did and it was an astounding experience. I sent him a thank-you for the recommendation.
I've spoken for one particular client several times a year for the last five years or so. This year budgets are tight and she just couldn't have me for a meeting in April that we've planned. I thanked her for trying.
It sounds so simple. Just say thank-you for the good things folks give you and do for you. How does that help business? There are two ways.
First, you stand out from the pack because nobody sends thank-you notes any more. The ones that do usually send mass-mailed, emailed, voice-mail-blasted techno-messages with all the human characteristics of a turret lathe.
More importantly, those notes, one at a time, enrich your relationships with your customers and friends. Relationships are your core competitive advantage. Your competitors can copy everything else: your pricing; your products; your promotions. They can't copy your relationships.
Here's how to make it work. Buy some nice note cards. They're inexpensive. Keep them handy. Keep stamps handy, too. Then write notes when good things happen.
Don't slack though. Write three notes a day, no matter what. That was mom's example. I asked her once how she was always able to do that. "There's always someone to thank," was her reply, "And it lifts your spirit, too." Saying thank you makes you feel better.
Three notes a day. That's all I ask. And thanks for reading.
Created/Revised/Reviewed: 30 July 2002
This is only one Big Idea. You'll find more in Wally's book, What's the Big Idea? and in his Big Idea column. There's a complete list on the Main Big Idea page. You may also order the book by clicking here.
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