Finding the right helpers for you is always important, no matter if it’s a doctor, solar company, or website designer.

I was reminded of this, once again, on a recent trip to see a doctor. I saw a neurologist at Stanford a few days ago. And I left frustrated.

It’s never good when your doctor says early on in the visit that he didn’t know why I was there.

Then the doctor told me that he didn’t know why I was seeing him.

To his credit, he tried to help. He gave me some idea of how well Stanford could help based on my symptoms.

If I can find the right doctor at Stanford before it’s too late.

Stupid Business Tricks

So, there are two problems.

One is having people who tell you they can help before you’re a patient. Or before you’re a customer.

The other is people who think new customers are more important than existing ones.

I recently found Sunrun is a case in point.

Sunrun is a large solar energy company, and we have solar on our house. V3 Electric installed the panels for free, but Sunrun manages the bills.

They also offer backup batteries. That’s useful in places where I live, which is a small town in the Sierra foothills.

But Sunrun doesn’t offer it. Their customer support people have a canned response: We don’t offer that to existing customers right now, and we don’t know when we will.

I’ve seen enough class-action lawsuits against big companies for doing dumb stuff.

I wonder how long it will be before Sunrun gets sued.

At least Generac is happy.

Being the Light

Now that I’m more aware of this, I don’t want to spread the same grief in my business. I want to help people who are finding the right helpers.

I think I can do that by offering a free Zoom consultation for anyone who gives me contact information on my website pop-up form.

Pick my brain.

Ask me questions.

No time limit.

I don’t know if I’ll be able to help. But I want to find the right fit for customers.

If people are finding the right helpers, then I have the power to help them do that.

If it’s not me, I’ll try to find the right solution.

People remember when you do. And when you don’t.

Eric Butow is the owner of Butow Communications Group (BCG). See if BCG is a good fit for you by setting up a meeting with BCG!