My partner Dave recently had trouble with his iPhone.  As great a gadget as the iPhone is, neither Apple nor AT&T Wireless offer insurance on the iPhone.  Best Buy stepped in offering the only insurance available on the product – serviced by its Geek Squad.

Oh oh…dead cow!

After 2 years of paying $11+ per month, Dave needed service.  He dropped it off at the Geek Squad – “it’ll be ready and back here by Friday.”  Friday comes…and an hour of voicemail hell later…”sorry, maybe tomorrow.”  Saturday…no answer at the Geek Squad all day.  He left a message with the store’s customer service to please call him back.  Sunday…another hour of the run around, “sorry, there are no deliveries on Saturday or Sunday.  Maybe Monday?”

“I didn’t even get a call from you guys, isn’t there a message for you?”  “Truth is we’re really busy, and there’s a whole pile of messages sitting on this desk.  We don’t look at them.  We just wait for the customer to call back.”

Okay – get the picture?  Now ponder this:

Best Buy is in the electronics business.  Why can’t they put your order status online for you to check?  Or shipping status?  Especially when the Geek Squad desk is too busy to even look at the pile of messages on their desk!

Best Buy promised a service that made them unique – but the promise turns out to be pretty empty.  That’s a dead cow.  That’s utter brand destruction.

The ambitious goals and strategies of my new business required that I recruit like-minded, motivated, and competent partners.  When I found them, the fun and momentum of a new venture kicked in and we were soon off and running.  Well, sort of.

Something wasn’t quite clicking.  The idea and profit potential was there.  The skill sets.  The market need.

But just when you’d think things were ready to roll, another distraction would pop up.  Went on like this for about a year.

Our wheels were stuck in the mud.

Time to change the wheels.

Not only did partners change, I chose a different type of partner.

Now we’re cruising down the road at 65mph, driving towards a relaunch with business in the bank and a growing pipeline.

Hitting the skids along your planned route is like the pain you feel when you’re hurt.  It’s a warning system.

It means you’re faced with a decision of change – whether a mild adjustment or a major overhaul.

It’s important to maintain the perspective that almost every plan needs adjustments along the way to goal achievement.

Heed the warning and pause. Review your strategy, make corrections, and rededicate yourself to your vision.

Posted by: Steve Banis