As
an entrepreneur, dealing with some customer is quite challenging. Your goal is
to offer a premium value that gives their business an edge at a competitive
price, and as you do so, you observe the following:
Some
customers wants you to do more than what they pay for (products or services
rendered), well that might not be an issue because it shows that you are adding
value to their business or operations. However, when such customer does not
appreciate the extra effort (at least by words) that when it’s morally wrong
and frustrating. Knowing that you want your services to stand-out, should one
keep on attending to such customers with same effort or minimal effort?
Another
observation is that: Some customers will never be satisfied. Though this might
be influenced by the changing nature of business operation or market trends, an
entrepreneur having a foresight of these changes has an advantage. The worst
for an entrepreneur is having a nagging customer and your woes are compounded
when the exceptional cliché “The customer is always right” is used despite the
extra effort. How then does one tackle these many problems, which are not
directly yours?
This
customer behavioral pattern of bringing problems that were not there is what I
term as the Lernaean Hydra Syndrome. The Lernaean Hydra (aka Hydra) is a mythical
reptile creature with many heads, and for every head cut-off two more grew. This
is depicted in the famous Walt Disney animated film Hercules, though defeated by causing a landslide attack, not by
cutting off it heads.
Business
expert say having a Service Level Agreement with prospective customers will
suffice as solution; but in this present market, an entrepreneur reaching
agreements with customers is more time consuming than offering the services or
products, even when there is an agreement, it is not totally enforced. Hence
for start-ups and entrepreneurs the Lernaean Hydra Syndrome lingers on as they
try to create a niche for themselves.