How to Get New Clients in a Competitive Environment

/ 10.01.2013. u 14:17

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A Play in One Act

The following is a true story...

"I want to change from Telenor to VIP."
"Can I have your licna karta?"
I give my ID card.
"Wait just a moment," he said, and he went to the back of the shop.

15 minutes later.

"You can switch, but you cannot use our phones," he declared.
"I did not ask for one," I said.
"Because you are a foreigner you cannot have any of our phones."
"I don't want I phone."
"You cannot have one."
"Why?"
"Because you are a foreigner."
"Did you look at my licna karta? I have been here for 10 years, I have owned two companies here, I have a JMBG. Why can't I have a phone?"

He shrugged his shoulders.

"Is that an explanation?" I asked, getting steamed up.
"Let me talk to the manager," I said.
"He's not here."
"Who did you go talk to in the back?"
"A colleague."
"Let me talk to him."
"He does not decide on this."
"Then why should I care what he told you?"

More shrugging.

"Where is the manager then?" I asked.
"He's not here."
"Call him."

He pretends to call someone. We wait. He does not look at me.

"He does not answer."
"Tell him he lost a customer today."
"Ok."
"Make sure he knows about this - or I will."

EPILOGUE

With a final shrug of his shoulders, he indicated to me and everyone standing in line behind me that he could not care less that he just turned away a potential client. Moreover, he lost me as a client for exactly the WRONG reasons - I never wanted a 1 dinar phone from him or a two year contract, or anything. But he insisted so much on the fact that I could NOT have it that I could not, in good conscience, do further business with him.

Tonight he will go home and never think about this. In six months when VIP lays him off because the number of clients starts to decline, he will not wonder what his part in this story was.

He will just shrug his shoulders.

Atačmenti

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expolicajac 14:29 10.01.2013

Srbija

Chris Farmer 14:38 10.01.2013

Re: Srbija

I am sure I have heard that before... Ovo je Srbija!

dragan7557 14:50 10.01.2013

Re: Srbija

expolicajac

A šta bi trebalo da znači ono Srbija?

Uzgred nije mi poznato kakve lične karte Srbija izdaje strancima i koju vrstu građanskih servisnih brojeva(JMBG) država izdaje stranim državljanima, ali je činjenica da u EU posedovanje firme pa i dve ili više(naveden "argument" ) kao ni posedovanje lične karte ili servisnog broja građanina(JMBG) nije potvrda o posedovanju državljanstva, niti znači da građanin poseduje državljanstvo.

Kako se državljanstvo dokazuje je druga priča.

Uostalom koliko mi je poznato u Srbiji je potpuno legalno u trafici kupiti telefonski broj pre paid karticu bez pokazivanja ikakvih ličnih dokumenata.

U mnogim EU(i van EU) državama za pre paid telefonski broj je procedura vezana za foto-kopiranje l.k ili pasoša, naravno bez ikakve potrebe.

cerski

juniorr 14:53 10.01.2013

Re: Srbija

Kako se državljanstvo dokazuje je druga priča.

žerar zna sve o tome!

Chris Farmer 14:58 10.01.2013

Re: Srbija

The link was only in response to the title of your comment: "Srbija."

As to the rest, you are quite right - although I am at pains to understand why one's nationality should be decisive on getting phone service. If I were a tourist here, I could understand.

Maybe Bobby McFerrin has the best philosophy...

:)

dragan7557 15:00 10.01.2013

Re: Srbija

juniorr
Kako se državljanstvo dokazuje je druga priča.

žerar zna sve o tome!

Baš, ostaje samo da dreknem: svi smo mi Žerar!

Mada kad bolje razmislim izgleda mi vrlo glupavo, pa zato ćutim.

cerski

bookez 01:12 11.01.2013

Re: Srbija

U mnogim EU(i van EU) državama za pre paid telefonski broj je procedura vezana za foto-kopiranje l.k ili pasoša, naravno bez ikakve potrebe.

Nije bez ikakve potrebe, naročito posle napada u Madridu 2004.

krudy15 18:26 11.01.2013

Re: Srbija

I ima smisla i kada se radi o maltretiranjima ljudi anonimnim telefonskim pozivima, laznim pozivima hitnoj pomoci, vatrogascima, i slicno, sto se kod nas naveliko desava bas zato sto na svakom cosku mozete dobiti prepaid broj a da vas niko nista ne pita.

maksa83 22:03 12.01.2013

Re: Srbija

I ima smisla i kada se radi o maltretiranjima ljudi anonimnim telefonskim pozivima, laznim pozivima hitnoj pomoci, vatrogascima, i slicno

Cybercrime, pre svega. Sa anonimnim pripejd brojem si neuhvatljiv.

albicilla 18:50 15.01.2013

Re: Srbija

I am sure I have heard that before... Ovo je Srbija!

Well, this is Serbia. And so many expatriates do prove to be the biggest “Serbs” in it.

Almost 10 years ago, I was interviewed by a young expat editor of one local magazine published in English. I was offered to write for around 35 Euros (and i still remember writing for 100 Marks nearly ten years earlier, plus trip expenses). However, we shook hands.

In our next communication, that very same editor has claimed that he has offered me only 25 Euros. Thinking that such undercutting of his own offer in not the best basis for collaboration, I have thanked him and left without looking back.

Maybe our pissed blogger knows that editor?

juniorr 14:31 10.01.2013

VIP

is the worst. Feel lucky..

Chris Farmer 14:40 10.01.2013

Re: VIP

juniorr
is the worst. Feel lucky..

Inasmuch as all three providers are about the same, I feel like I lost time and nerves for precious little....

But thanks.

juniorr 14:49 10.01.2013

Re: VIP

all three providers are about the same

so very true!

but vip..

jinks 14:39 10.01.2013

...

Albert Einstein

Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.

regarding

In six months when VIP lays him off because the number of clients starts to decline, he will not wonder what his part in this story was.

He will just shrug his shoulders.

p.s.

Are you sure that he will be the only one laid off, i.e. that there will not be any other collateral casualties.

Chris Farmer 14:43 10.01.2013

Re: ...

jinks

regarding

In six months when VIP lays him off because the number of clients starts to decline, he will not wonder what his part in this story was.

He will just shrug his shoulders.

p.s.

Are you sure that he will be the only one laid off, i.e. that there will not be any other collateral casualties.

Einstein is the best!
And as to your p.s., I am quite sure that somehow there will be NO consequences - except to the consumers.

juniorr 14:52 10.01.2013

Re: ...

consequences

someone said consequences?!

golubica.bg 16:32 10.01.2013

Hmm...

Maybe you should have passed an informal oral exam about the glorious Serbian history and then sung the national anthem with three fingers proudly in the air...

maksa83 16:32 10.01.2013

s-s-s-superoperater

You were actually lucky. VIP sucks big time in more ways than you imagine.

blogovatelj 16:55 10.01.2013

Re: s-s-s-superoperater

s-s-s-superoperater

srdjan.pajic 16:58 10.01.2013

Kako zašto?

Mali Sloba
Napominjući da je istraga još u toku, Dačić je rekao da su prema izjavama roditelja mladići otišli na roštilj i da u prvim izveštajima nema nikakvih tragova da im je nasilno oduzet život.

"Mora da se vodi računa, jer dosta ima porodičnih nesreća, ubistava i samoubistava u porodici, što je manir koji nam često dolazi sa Zapada", dodao je Dačić.

blogovatelj 17:36 10.01.2013

Re: Kako zašto?

Kako zašto?

Kako covek da ti ne da preporuku.

A kake veze ima premijerova izjava sa postupkom austrijske firme u Srbiji?
Mislim, izjava je retardirana, ne pricam o tome, samo pitam gde je veza?

G.Cross 17:27 10.01.2013

I know how you feel

It happened same thing to me in UK.

Ozbiljno...

green_thumb 00:54 11.01.2013

:)

Oh, something along those lines happened to me as well - three months ago I went to VIP wanting to take a post-paid number. I was standing in the line and the girl in front of me was also getting a post-paid number. The worker frantically explained to her that she has to "pay 6 monthly bills in advance because she's unemployed" because she was "taking the high post-paid rate" (Smart 400) and that "it's impossible to choose a number because she's unemployed". Since I was (legally) unemployed at that time and wanted the same rate, I just went out thinking I have to pay too, and I hadn't brought any money with me.

Luckily, I went to another VIP office which is closer to my ATM. Greeted by a much more polite worker, our conversation went:

"Hi I want to take post-paid rate Smart 400 and a phone number."
"Great, if you don't want a phone you'll get a 45% discount."
"I don't, I already have a phone."
"Excellent! Would you like to choose a nice easy-to-remember number?"
"You can do that? And do I have to pay something in advance? I'm unemployed you know."
"It doesn't matter if you're employed or not. You need to pay only 200 dinars for the number."

So I guess it all depends upon the worker and his/hers common sense and a desire to earn more profit for the company.

mozzart89 02:55 11.01.2013

Re: :)

That's one of the predominant reasons why I currently live&work in the west and not home...
It's a matter of standards. I hate it when something depends on a free will of the individual (I mean when it comes to doing business and dealing with professional issues, I'm not talking about other stuff). So, if you go to Canada for instance, you can't notice too much difference between public places in different cities because they're standardized. Whether it be ultra-high, high or reasonable standards (regarding the particular field of life you're referring to) - if you go to a post office or a bank or, I don't know - public toilet, it's more or less the same no matter where you are exactly... It is just not possible to get different answers to a same (straightforward) question in two different branches of the same wireless provider; I just can't see that happening. And workers are not necessarily trained and educated in the same way (maybe they're trained in a common way for some basic things such as attitude, but not for actual work - that's where they just comply to the standards that already exist and are firmly established way, way before).
My point is - we had a really rough period back home and it will take some time before we start caring about non-essential things (other than basically just surviving)... And when it comes to doing business - those are the tings that make you choose a particular service provider...as simple as that.
I think it is very possible for our companies to work better, but we have to be patient and invest in proper education and most important of all - give the people a chance to improve themselves and really standardize and improve all the basics, so you draw the best out of your people...
We are a destroyed society that needs to be rebuilt and we have been doing it the wrong way for some time now. I just don't know if it's realistic, but we need to change. And not for the sake of any political interest, but for the sake of our children. And of course, there's some traditional things that I wouldn't like to see changed. That's where you have to be very wise to set a limit for the intensity of the process.
I support Chris' fight to understand stuff and point out stuff that happens what looks like without a valid reason, but I have to tell you - you can't expect much more. The social environment is so poor that I just have to also understand people who are not motivated to work hard enough. Although I wouldn't be one of them if I were in their shoes...

dragan7557 12:09 11.01.2013

Re: :)

mozzart:
I hate it when something depends on a free will of the individual

There is no such thing as free will of the individual.

cerski

mozzart89 15:52 11.01.2013

Re: :)

dragan7557
mozzart:
I hate it when something depends on a free will of the individual

There is no such thing as free will of the individual.

cerski

Yeah, I can agree...
It's probably lost in the translation.
What I actually meant is: Nervira me kad nesto zavisi od toga kako se kome digne danas!
Cheers.

dragan7557 16:02 11.01.2013

Re: :)

mozzart:
Cheers.

Á votre santé!

cerski

noboole 19:00 11.01.2013

.

.איר זענט אַלע בוללשיטטערס

winthorst 12:45 13.01.2013

Samo u Srbiji

Ne zeleci da opravdavam gore navedenog radnika u VIPovoj radnji jedna stvar mi upada u oci. Koliko sam mogao razumjeti, vi ste pricali sa prodavcem na engleskom. Za ilustraciju, ja isto zivim u stranoj zemlji vec malo vise od 10 godina i ovde gdje zivim potpuno je nezamislivo da neko ne prica jezik te zemlje nakon 10 i vise godina boravka u istoj. Mislim, ima takvih individua, ali mozete zamisliti kako ostatak populacije, i domace i stranaca, na njih gleda... U Srbiji bi se na to mogao dodati i stav povodom agresije NATOa i zacinjen situacijom oko Kosova.

Drugi primjer, kad sam putovao kuci, trazio sam od mog provajdera da mi omoguci roaming dok sam u matici. Do tada sam bio 10 godina njihov korisnik na pri pejd opciji. Za to su mi trazili da uplatim €50 kredita i da ih ponovo nazovem. Nakon sto sam to i ucinio operator mi je trazio detalje kreditne kartice. Na moje negodovanje zasto mi to nisu odmah rekli odgovorio je da on nije pricao sa mnom prethodni put i ne zna sa kim sam uopste pricao ali da je ovo standardna procedura. Nakon toga sam trazio da pricam sa menadzerom na sta sam dobio odgovor da je on menadzer. Nakon moje izjave da ce oni zbog ovakvog stava izgubiti 10godisnjeg korisnika odgovorio mi je da radim sta zelim i spustio slusalicu.

Tako da, gospodine Farmer, nije "Samo u Srbiji"...

Da ne spominjem moja iskustva sa osiguravajucim kucama, ili drzavnim sluzbenicima... A isto placam (podobar) porez toj drzavi i postujem njene zakone

Da samo dodam, zemlja gdje zivim je Prvi Svijet, i englesko govorno podrucje.

tyson 16:47 14.01.2013

TIS

In six months when VIP lays him off because the number of clients starts to decline

You optimist. That will never happen.

he will not wonder what his part in this story was.

...but if by some miracle it does, than you're absolutely right, this person will for sure think/feel the way quoted.

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Atačmenti

Srbija

Re: Srbija

Re: Srbija

Re: Srbija

Re: Srbija

Re: Srbija

Re: Srbija

Re: Srbija

Re: Srbija

Re: Srbija

VIP

Re: VIP

Re: VIP

...

Re: ...

Re: ...

Hmm...

s-s-s-superoperater

Re: s-s-s-superoperater

Kako zašto?

Re: Kako zašto?

I know how you feel

:)

Re: :)

Re: :)

Re: :)

Re: :)

.

Samo u Srbiji

TIS

Chris Farmer

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