I'm frustrated with my chosen profession. No, it's not because of my job, our clients, the company, my business partner, or any other internal source. I'm frustrated because there seems to be a conspicuous downward trend among service providers in the small-business space.
To wit: After a really good meeting last week, our client expressed a great deal of frustration regarding a vendor who had previously handled their web projects. In this case, the client and vendor discussed and agreed upon a timeline with regard to a specific project, and the vendor proceeded to drop the ball in a big, big way. In this instance, he wasn't a few days off, or even a few weeks. They were a full month late, resulting in not only lost revenue for the client, but an immeasurable loss of respect for the brand.
Unfortunately, this client isn't alone. In the past few months, I've talked to many clients that share the same frustration. Some of them have actually paid sizable deposits to their vendors in advance, only to be left with an unfinished project, a diminished bank account and a contempt for web-marketing agencies. I can't say that I blame them—I've been on that side of the desk too. It's no fun.
Brian and I founded
Ideavise almost two years ago to address what we perceived to be a underserved portion of the marketplace. We've worked with many different vendors over the years, and felt that there was room for a different kind of company that was focused on small business as its primary market. Like many of our clients, we're passionate about entrepreneurship and passionate about serving the needs of small-businesses—people just like us. We avoid the hard sell and hate fine print. We value our reputations (and yours) and believe that there are very few things in business more important than a person's word.
If you've had or are having problems with a service provider, I'd encourage you to view it as an opportunity to find someone who understands your needs. And if you find yourself looking, we'd love the chance to earn your business the good, old-fashioned way—with a smile and a handshake, true to our word, with respect for you and your timeline.
Thanks for reading.
—Jason @ Ideavise
