Over the last few weeks, I have had occasion to procure the services of a few local businesses for some domestic requirements.

ALSO READ : Good Business Basics: This investment needs a return

I have been pleasantly surprised by the experience, after having in the past lamented the attitude and general professionalism of local small businesses.

Efficient

In all three instances, the responses to my enquiries were efficiently and warmly dealt with, to the extent that two of them offered to meet with me the same day to provide quotations.

In all three cases, I was kept well informed about the planned dates to carry out the work and any challenges they might have encountered.

The work was competently executed, and the commitment to full customer satisfaction was evident.

Timeous

In the one case where remedial action was requested, this too was carried out timeously and without any reservation or hassle.

I spent some time chatting to all three while they worked, and without exception, they had been in business on the coast for over 15 years, in the same fields.

Golden rules

The one related an incident to me where a customer she had serviced 10 years ago called her because he had bought a new house, and required her type of service.

So the secret of building sustainable, successful small businesses is not rocket science – concentrating on the basics is often all that is required.

The common characteristics that emerged from my talks with them was:

• Always responding swiftly and professionally to enquiries
• Treat all enquiries equally, no matter the size or potential income
• Keep customers continually informed
• Ensure full customer satisfaction at all times

To me, these are the four golden rules that emerging entrepreneurs must follow. Always keeping them tends to result in the building of trust between you and the customer, which is usually the foundation of strong and abiding relationships.

Network

The other interesting fact was they had strong networks among each other, often recommending colleagues in allied fields.

In my case the upholstery specialist was able to recommend a leather cleaning specialist, and no doubt he would at some stage return the favour.

They fully understood the power of ‘word of mouth’ advertising, which provided them with a steady stream of business.

After matriculating, Vijay Naidoo studied Economics in the UK. Upon his return, he joined the family construction business as MD for 10 years.

He subsequently joined his sister in their furniture manufacturing business as director for quality assurance and operations. He was responsible for all quality aspects of their products, and led the project to the business achieving an ISO 9000 quality accreditation. As an export focused business, this was important for our international competitiveness.

Mr Naidoo has an abiding interest in quality management and productivity improvement, particularly in manufacturing.

More recently, he has focused a lot of his time on giving back to the community by way of mentorship of small businesses and sitting on the executive of the South Coast Chamber of Commerce. He also sits on the Board of the Ugu South Coast Development Agency.

HAVE YOUR SAY

Like the South Coast Herald’s Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and Instagram

To receive our FREE email newsletter, click HERE