Is There a Market for Quality?

Give the people what they want.

George Jessel

Obviously, as a small business owner, we must follow the advice of George Jessel, and give the people what they want. If we’re trying to sell something that no one wants, there’s an oversized chance that we we’ll quickly find ourselves out of business! Unfortunately, too many businesses point to this quote as justification for doing inferior work; for providing a mediocre product. They’re only doing second-rate work, they say, because that’s all they’re clients want; it’s all they’re willing to pay for; it’s what the market demands.

When push comes to shove, regardless of what excuse we’re using, this kind of talk is all just a convenient alibi. Whether or not there’s any truth to our justifications, they’re really just an excuse. Whether or not our client is mistaken, misinformed, or has simply been misled by someone else, it’s all just an excuse to keep us from having to do meaningful work.

Yes, it’s cheaper, easier, and less difficult to simply give them what they want. That doesn’t mean that we’re doing what we really should be doing.

Now, before you start blowing up my inbox with the excuses, I am already aware of the fact that there will always be a certain segment of the market that wants nothing more than a Dollar Store-type product. That’s a given, but it’s not what we’re discussing here.

We know there’s going to be a large percentage of consumers that are going to clamor for the lowest price; it’s human nature. Lots of people are wired to be cheap; to look for mass-marketed products at the lowest possible price. There’s evidence of it at every turn: Walmart, Dollar Store, Cricket Wireless, McDonalds, Taco Bell, the examples are endless. Inferior-quality products at bargain-basement prices.

The masses are out there, crying out for us to give them what they want (at a price they’re willing to pay.)

Regardless of the fact that many (most?) consumers are looking for the equivalent of a Walmart-brand home inspector, the fact is that quality of our inspection product is almost entirely up to us; we get to choose how we run our business. We have the power to determine how we respond to the demands of our market.

We could choose to open a Taco Bell, serving the lowest quality food allowed by law, making a miniscule profit margin on each sale and hoping to turn a profit based on volume. (There’s a reason why these types of businesses often stay open 24 hours a day: they’ve got to make every sale possible in order to make enough money to keep the lights on.)

There’s a common mistake we all make when we start our businesses: we don’t give enough thought to what type of quality we’re going to provide or how much we’re going to charge for our products.

Are we going to be the next McDonald’s, churning out value-meal inspection reports that provide the lowest-quality product allowed by our Standards, making a miniscule amount of profit on each sale? Do we keep plugging along, hoping to turn a profit based on volume; doing enough inspections to cover the inevitable refunds, complaints, and lawsuits?

The demand for bottom-of-the-barrel home inspections is out there. There will always be a drive-through line full of customers looking for a happy meal. There will always be clients that want to pay the least, while at the same time expecting the most.

We really can’t do anything about that; it’s human nature. Those type of customers will be there. We can’t control it. Like the crashing waves on the beach, they’re constantly beating us up over price, wearing on us, trying to get us to cave to they’re desires. We can’t stop those type of customers, so we need to focus our attention on the things that we can control.

What we do in response to the demand for cheap inspections is what’s going to determine our future. The choices we make, whether or not to pander to those type of customers, influences everything we do going forward. It’s the point where we rise to the challenge or we fall to the bottom with everyone else; we either sink or swim.

It’s our choice. Do we serve the discriminating clients who are in the market for a white-tablecloth, four-course dinner or throw a happy meal at them as they rush by the drive-through window?

The quality of our work will be determined by the level of clientele we choose to work for in our business. Are we looking to do meaningful work at a reasonable price, and make a difference in the lives of our clients, or are we simply looking to collect a tiny check for doing as little work as humanly possible?

Are we going to be content with charging as little as we can for our product, or are we going to price our offering commensurate with the quality that we’re providing?

Those who spend the least and ask for the most before ordering will do the same after the sale.

Timothy Ferriss

If, in every one of our opportunities we were blessed with ideal customers and discerning clientele, willing to pay for a quality product, then meaningful work wouldn’t be so rare. The opportunities for us to do something important in our field would flourish, and we would do good work.

But that’s not reality, is it?

Ideal customers, discerning clientele and knowledgeable intermediaries are few and far between. Or at least it seems that way.

The question then becomes, do we stoop to the level of our base clients, or do we still do meaningful work anyway? Do we continue to offer the highest value product that we can, in the hopes that one day someone will notice?

We all want better quality clients, better quality houses, and better quality real estate agents. But they’re not simply going to materialize out of thin air. We’ve got to make them want to come. We’ve got to make them want to do business with us.

People don’t just gather together in an abandoned building, waiting for someone to come along and open a fine dining restaurant. The business owner has got to do the hard work of constructing the building, outfitting the kitchen, training the staff, buying the food, and opening the business before the first customer walks through the door.

Build it and they will come.

Misquoted line, spoken by Kevin Costner in the film Field of Dreams

It’s up to us to build a business that attracts quality clients. It’s up to us to avoid falling in the trap of choosing the easy button. It’s up to us to do work that matters, and it’s up to us to attract clientele that will appreciate (and pay for) a job well done.

We have the ability to control every aspect of our business. Now that we realize this, it’s up to us to exercise that control. For better or for worse.

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Thanks, Joe