RANT ALERT:
Astounding: I just got off the phone with AT&T who won’t let me do a change to my phone plan because (pay attention to this) “that number’s in the new edition of the phone book which just went to print 30 days ago. You can only make those types of changes between December 15th and January 15th each year before the phone book goes to print.”
AT&T still cares about the phone BOOK? Astounding! I’m sure that it still produces a revenue stream from those still foolish enough to advertise in it, but to make decisions that affect the rest of their customers based upon the phone book is ludicrous!
Here’s my open letter to AT&T:
Dear monolithic, bureaucratic, antiquated AT&T,
1970 just called, it wants its phone company back.
You just lost yet another customer.
Love,
Don
P.S. In case you haven’t checked, it’s 2014.
I was looking through a drawer last month and actually found a 4-year-old phone book and enjoyed a moment of nostalgia as I dropped it in the recycling bin.
That and a feeling of relief that I’m no longer forking out hundreds every month for a yellow page ad (remember those!?!)
What a shame that this company, which has made some pretty good strategic moves over the last 20 years is still refusing to change with the times (changes, BTW, that THEY helped create.)
Here’s my questions for you, the reader:
What old traditions are you holding onto in your business?
What assumptions are holding you back?
Is your reluctance to change making you vulnerable to losing customers?
Let me give a few examples of this reluctance that I see all the time:
- Unwillingness to take the 2 hours it takes to figure out how to create videos
- Unwillingness to blog regularly
- Unwillingness to create an information product to any business to add to sales and/or to build your positioning
- Unwillingness to consider training as an investment rather than an expense
Are you guilty of any of these?
Don’t be an AT&T. Remember, they’re losing a customer because of this.
What is holding YOU back? Leave a comment below. And don’t forget to +1, Like, Share, Tweet and Pin this post!
Image credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zombieite/ Published under Creative Commons