In a program I was conducting yesterday here in Sydney, Australia, I heard about a customer who had purchased a $90,000 automobile, only to find the battery in his key fob wasn’t working after only ninety days.

“No big deal,” the customer reportedly thought, “I’ll just get the dealer to replace it.” And, of course, they did.

However, what the customer didn’t expect was a bill for $15.

The problem for the customer wasn’t really an issue about whether a battery was covered under his warranty. It was something infinitely more important: how his patronage was valued by the dealership. After dropping $90K on a car and being a good customer, the unwillingness of the dealership to take care of a small battery left him with a terrible taste about his relationship with their organization.

The dealer got their fifteen bucks. And, they lost a customer that was probably going to spend tens of thousands of dollars with them over the next few years.

They were stepping over dollars to get to dimes.

In a recent episode of my podcast, PROJECT DISTINCT, I related the story of an executive who had spent thirty nights in a hotel here in Sydney. When he awoke to his room temperature in the upper 70s, he called the front desk to be told the air conditioning had been turned off “for the season.” The hotel not only refused to make things right for him, they told him he was “lucky” they didn’t assess a charge for early checkout.

This great customer won’t return to the hotel.

They were stepping over dollars to get to dimes.

The problem for many of us is that we will read these examples and believe – while unfortunate to those who have had to endure the indignity – that kind of mistake won’t occur on our watch. Yet, it often does.

Team members who believe the enforcement of policy is more important than a thrilled customer is the cornerstone of this challenge. Leaders must be committed to establishing a culture where everyone’s job is less about following procedure than pleasing our patrons.

• I don’t believe that anyone at the car dealership or the Sydney hotel went to work that morning with the intention of destroying the lifetime value of a good customer.
• But, somewhere along the way, no leader ensured that every team member knew that they were never supposed to step over dollars to pick up dimes.

By the way, does YOUR team know that? Are you CERTAIN?