Lately we have had a number of clients join us from other partners and a common theme in the reason for them leaving the partners they originally chose (none of which considered EBS as it happens when making their initial decisions!) is the fact that they had lost trust in their existing partner (due in part to a lack of ethics and accountability on the part of their original partner).
It disturbs us that these operators are in the market and it’s not a nice experience trying to convince a client with a ‘failed’ implementation that they may have to go back to square one in some cases and start again in order to ensure success and alignment to their original goals. Selecting to replace an old Finance or ERP system is no small feat and commonly, you ‘don’t know what you don’t know’ until it’s too late. It’s (relatively) easier to buy cheaper or to be convinced that you may be able to implement a new system by yourself, but this is seldom, if ever the case and we have seen time and time again that you get what you pay for.
We have welcomed several new clients recently who had been through some painful times and couldn’t wait to make their way to the nearest exit and seek our services due to past betrayals of product delivery and poor service quality crippling their relationships and trust.
First rule in business – we don’t exist without clients
First rule in any business, we don’t exist without clients and our client relationships are extremely important to us here at EBS. Being competitive and cheap always comes at a price, everyone can always be cheaper but I’m a firm believer that you get what you pay for. While most of our competitive partners in Australia are reputable companies with a long history such as ourselves and take pride in their ability to deliver, unfortunately (like in any other industry), there are some that are not. For many organisations cheap prices and closing deals have become their only objective and the actual delivery of the solution once the deal has been done has lost its importance.
It’s easy to get caught up in purchasing the cheapest version of a product and service and believe you’re saving money now. But what happens in the days and weeks after, when you’ve made the purchase and the service and products don’t meet your needs and requirements? You’re left short-changed and need to invest more money to get the right product and service. Unfortunately, we know all too well buying on the cheap for software products and promised services (over promise and underdeliver), means spending more money down the line for rectifying the unnecessary and avoidable problems, ongoing maintenance and services, just to name a few.
A disposable and cheap business deal may land you the sale, it may land you several. You hit your weekly or monthly KPI targets and then what? The after service and value you deliver to clients starts and stops with us. Generally, the after service and nurturing comes after the customer has signed on the dotted line and this is where the hard work continues not just begins. This is where we must walk our talk and provide the value to our clients.
Price is what you pay, value is what you get
The old sayings ‘You buy cheap you buy twice’ and ‘Good work ain’t cheap and cheap work ain’t good’ have been over used for a good reason, our newly acquired clients have experienced these shortcomings. As Warren Buffet says, “Price is what you pay, value is what you get”. The actual definition of value is: The regard that something is held to deserve; the importance, worth, or usefulness of something. Simply put, a product or service is of value if it’s ‘worth’ the price you pay for it. Who determines this? The client determines the value and worth from the product, service and experiences they invest in.
Our ethics, values and clients are at the heart of how and why do business
I was recently asked about our values, ethics, client relationships and trust. Our ethics, values and clients are at the heart of how and why do business and this in turn, we believe, builds trust. We believe a sense of purpose, commitment to values and a collective consciousness is imperative. Is there ‘value’ in ethics and company values? Absolutely, and we know this first hand. Not only do we align ourselves with clients who share our value system and ethical practices, this is also actively sought after by our clients.
Our organisation values are front and center in everything we do and we embrace them wholeheartedly. Our ethical practices and values guide us in everything we do across all aspects of our business. The decisions we make, the way in which we interact with our clients, how we provide our services and the way we source our talented team. We always welcome opportunities to improve, do better and be better. Continuously building trust, offering real value based products, services and nurturing our client relationships, has been key to our loyal client base and community.
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Paul Woods is CEO and founder of EBS. He has extensive experience in systems specification and selection through to implementation, training and support across different industries.