I hope that this post finds everyone happy and healthy. I would like to open today with a well-known saying: “All the world’s a stage.” Depending on how old you are (and your musical interests), you may believe that this saying originated in a song by the rock band Rush. It’s actually a phrase that begins a monologue from William Shakespeare’s play As You Like It: “All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players…” The speech goes on to compare the world to a stage, and life to different acts of a play.
No matter what your business, each of our clients is different. They all have different needs, different pre-conceived notions, and different ideas. And while every home inspection can be distilled down to the same basic tenant – someone is buying a property and we are inspecting it for deficiencies – every inspection is slightly different from the last. Just as every house is somewhat different, every client we perform an inspection for is somewhat different. Yes, there are many qualities that potential home buyers share, but every person is a unique individual. There’s only one of them, and now they’re your customer. Remaining cognizant of this fact (and acting upon that knowledge) dramatically increases our chance of success while performing an inspection.
Performing.
I have always found it interesting that we describe what we do for a living as “performing” an inspection. Performing is described as the act of presenting some form of entertainment to an audience. Ironically enough, in today’s world, those audiences are paying to attend these performances. We all do. Almost anything worth doing cost money; so we pay it. Unfortunately, our efforts sometime leave us disappointed. We have all purchased tickets for an evening’s entertainment (i.e.; a movie, a play, a concert) and, when the night was over, left feeling like we wasted our hard-earned money because the performance didn’t live up to our expectations?
The same potential for disappointment exists with our home inspection clients. The buyers we strive to serve are human, just like us. They are also spending their hard-earned money, and there’s a possibility that they also will be disappointed with the evening’s entertainment. When our clients come in with a certain level of expectation, there’s only two things that can happen: we either meet those expectations (which is difficult when we don’t know what they are) or they leave disappointed.
The same potential for disappointment exists with our home inspection clients.
The mantra that I attempt to instill in home inspection trainees is that when we perform an inspection, we are on stage, putting on a show. The inspectors that put on a good show, and leave their clients with the feeling that they got good value for their investment, will likely have a successful career. The bad actors will forever be relegated to second rate roles in the show: always around the stage but never quite standing in the spotlight.
To be successful in the inspection industry, we must be able to read our audience. We’ve got to figure out what it is they’re looking for in an inspection. It takes more time and effort, but making sure that we take our clients along with us for the journey that is a home inspection pays long-term dividends.
The more involved the client is in the process, the more satisfied they will be with the results. When the client sees the work that goes into the process, the results will be more recognizable to them, and they will (ultimately) have more empathy for the job you do as an inspector.
It’s equally as important to be able to read your client, to determine their mindset and recognize their expectations. While some people will crave and thoroughly enjoy the interaction, some people simply want the finished product and will shy away from this type of communication.
Harvey Fierstein, Tony award winning American actor and playwright said “What looks absolutely fabulous in rehearsal can fall flat in front of an audience. The audience dictates what you do or don’t (do).” Always remember to play to your audience. When you deliver what your client is anticipating and desiring, and ensure that they do not leave feeling like they wasted their money on a performance that did not live up to their expectations, you will become successful and ensure your place in the spotlight.
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Thanks, Joe
