Am I Only Worth $4?

Well, I certainly hope not. But the events of this weekend have lead me to believe that there’s at least one business owner in my neighborhood of Medellin, Colombia who thinks my LTV (long term value) as a customer does not exceed $4.

Over the weekend, I moved for the second time in 3 years. That’s the life of a digital nomadic entrepreneur. No, I haven’t changed cities or countries. I’m still in Medellin, Colombia.

The last time I moved home in Medellin, I used the same company to mount my flat screen TV on the wall. But this time the worker mistakenly undercharged me for $12,000 Colombian Pesos. I know $12,000 Colombian Pesos sounds like a lot of money to undercharge someone. But it isn’t.  It’s about $4 US. That’s no typo. Four U.S. dollars is equal to about $12,000 Colombian Pesos.

After realizing the employees’ mistake, the owner of the business had his secretary call me and request that I pay the $4. “No hay problema,” I told her. “Just send someone from your business to my home and I’ll pay it.” In Spanish she responded, “No, we need you to go to GANA and make the payment.”  What’s GANA you ask? Think Western Union. But GANA is not limited to sending and picking up money transfers. In Colombia, you can also use GANA to buy lottery tickets, pay utility bills and who knows what else. There’s a GANA less than a block from my home. But on more than one occasion, I’ve seen the line so long that you would have thought they were giving out free Visas to the States.

On a side note, in my life, I’ve made two observations:

1. There’s no such a thing as a rich man who does not value his time.
2. There’s no such a thing as a poor man who does.

Since I have no intentions of being in the poorhouse, there’s no need for me to mention, I did not go to GANA to stand on a potentially around-the-corner-wrapping line just to send someone $4.

So after I hang up the phone on his secretary, she calls back 15 minutes later with the same proposal. For some reason, she must have thought I changed my plans about living in the poorhouse. Again, I hang up on her.

She calls back again 15 minutes later with a slightly different proposal. After asking me where I bank and  I tell her “Bancolombia” she tells me there is a Bancolombia app, I can download the app, and send the $4. She gives me her company’s account info, I download the app, install it, and send the $4. Estimated time wasted from my afternoon because of her 3 calls, installing the app, having to stop and re-start whatever I was doing: approximately 54 minutes.

Later that same evening, a post from a Facebook group appears on my Facebook newsfeed. I belong to a Facebook group for Americans living in Medellin. Someone has left a post in that group asking for someone to recommend a business in the Laureles neighborhood of Medellin that can mount his flat screen TV. Not only did I just move from Laureles but that annoying company that mounted my TV is also located in Laureles. Which of the 3 do you think I did?

1. Responded to his Facebook post and wholeheartedly recommended the same business that had persecuted me the entire afternoon over $4?
2. Ignored the Facebook post.
3. Responded to his Facebook post and warned him NEVER to do business with that same business that had pestered me the entire afternoon over $4?

The business got off rather easy. Number 2 is the answer. But not only did that business lose an existing customer but the business also lost a potential customer.

What if the business had me a happy customer? I would have most likely used their services again (assuming I remain in Medellin). This was already the second time I had used their services. And the amount of referral business I could’ve sent them, is immeasurable. But if the owner of the business had exercised better judgment by not underestimating the long time value (LTV) of a customer instead of instructing his secretary to hassle me over $4, there’s no doubt in my mind, I would have recommended their services on Facebook – maybe even left an unsolicited raving review.

Now let’s take it a step even further . . .

Let’s assume the business had made me a happy customer and I had referred them to the guy in the Facebook group. Assuming they had also made him a happy customer, there’s no telling how much referral business they could’ve received since he is a very active member in that Facebook group.

As I said earlier, the business got off easy. How many people who have responded to the Facebook group member’s inquiry by flaming the business and warning him and others never to use their services. If you haven’t been keeping up with Internet jargon lately, flame means “to insult someone over the Internet.”

So what’s the moral of the story?

Do NOT ever underestimate the LTV (long term value) of a happy customer and how a happy customer’s word-of-mouth advertising can lead to a snowball effect in the growth of your business. The opposite is also true. A social media post from an unhappy or offended customer can cause serious or even irreparable damage to one’s business.

The days of when the worst that could happen from an unhappy customer would be having him or her complain to friends, family members and co-workers are long gone. By leaving a customer with a bad taste in his mouth today, you run the risk of having the customer flame you to untold amounts of people using Facebook, Twitter, Youtube or another social media platform.

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