Archive for the ‘perception’ tag
PERCEPTION IS AT LEAST AS IMPORTANT AS REALITY IN THE HOMEBUILDING BUSINESS
Perception is entirely subjective and can be an immediate reaction or one that is formed over an extended period of time. But regardless of the time frame, I believe that what we perceive becomes our reality and this subjective evaluation applies to everything in our lives; it is why we like some people, some companies and some new homes and may not like others.
One of my favorite restaurant servers is a young man named Scott. We first met him ten years ago when a new restaurant invited us to their “friends and family” opening and we have followed him as he has moved to several other dining establishments since then. He is very friendly and extremely personable and that more than makes up for the fact that he is really only adequate as a server, usually forgetting to bring requested items so that we often have to ask for them several times. We always request him when making a reservation and although the service may have flaws, the overall experience is “perceived” as delightful so that we recommend him to friends.
My favorite hotel company is Marriott. They do not necessarily enjoy the most convenient location, they are seldom the least expensive, they are not the most luxurious and I admittedly have had problems with various stays over the years. But because they went above and beyond any reasonable expectation fifteen years ago to satisfy a special request, my loyalty is permanent as I “perceive” this company as truly accommodating and exceptional. I not only use them for my own business and personal travel whenever I can but also recommend them when possible.
On the other hand, my wife and I decided on the spur of the moment to take a weekend cruise last month. We wanted get away for a couple of days and were not expecting much as only the lower priced cruise lines offered weekend cruises. Much to our surprise, the cruise exceeded our expectation and I took the time to write to the president of the company informing him of our satisfaction. The cruise itself raised my perception of the company but the response to my correspondence, an “insert name here” forty word form letter, suggested that the company really did not care about me as a customer and reduced my perception of the company below what it was originally.
But by far the most memorable instance where I saw perception overruling reality occurred in the homebuilding industry. When I first started in this business I was with a merchant builder based out of Chicago and after a few years had worked my way up to become their marketing director. We had built an affordable condominium community in the western suburbs and, in an unusual winter season that saw multiple freeze-thaw cycles, ice damming took place and leaks occurred in the majority of the homes. This was not a design or construction defect, as such, as the design and construction techniques were typical and followed industry standards for that area at that time.
