Provocative title – but it’s an important one. Particularly when it relates to the business of domaining.
Ours is a small world, and having a good reputation is vital when it comes to doing business.
Whether you’re doing business with an enduser – or a fellow domainer – or a provider of goods and services – the most important advice I can ever give is to keep your word. If you make a commitment or a promise to someone, then make sure you follow through.
Don’t Do Any Of These!
- Agree to sell a domain, but then, if you get a better offer from someone else, renege on the first offer.
- Promise to buy a domain from someone, but then avoid settling. Give lots of excuses.
- Get a website designed at an agreed price; or some other type of professional work; then “duck and dive” the payment.
There are plenty of other instances that I could write about.
Sometimes It’s Difficult
Let’s face it, sometimes mistakes happen, or the universe conspires against us. At times like these, it can be difficult to keep your word, or honour your commitments.
But if this should happen, communicate. Fess up – and most importantly, try and fix the problem; make amends – or make a plan to remedy the situation over time. You will find people respect that.
And if you should make a plan to remedy a particular situation, make sure it is attainable – and that you keep your word this time around. Because if you don’t, then you deserve everything that happens to you thereafter.
Ned O’Meara – 19th April 2017
Couldn’t agree more. Keeping your word is your whole credibility.
Say what you mean.
Mean what you say.
Indeed Robert. In my experience, you are one of those types of people.
It goes without saying that you are too, Ned.
Totally agree Ned. Most people know each other in this industry and keeping your word is paramount. You of all people have it in spades.
Don
Thanks Don.
In my experience over the past 10 years, you are one person whose word is their bond.
With my few dealings with Don, I can already agree with that.
This probably looks publicly like a male bonding and patting on the back section, but it’s good to say this stuff to colleagues! Especially when you do business together regularly, or have only have good experiences.
I have now dealt with many types of people over a few different industries and although I’ve been running my own businesses under one company umbrella now for over four years, I still learn lessons every day. I still learn ways to quickly pick who you can trust, and who is lying through their teeth and will cut your lunch as soon as they get the chance.
Contracts and paperwork are one thing. But if a guy can tell another guy, on the phone or in-person, “you have my word” and stick to it no matter what…. That’s a guy I will always do business with, and always confide in. That’s the guy I have been and always will be. When you find a guy like this that you can trust, you will always help out or send work his way, whenever you get the chance. (I’m not being sexist here, of course this goes for my professional business relationships with woman also 🙂
In one of my other businesses, I recently spent 4 months, every few days, helping him out with a side of his business where he needed my expertise. He already had the tender, but he didn’t know what he was doing. He told me he would “cut me in” on some of the tender if I could solve the problem for him. I even flew to Melbourne last December (on my own dime!) just to meet him face to face so we could see if we could work together. We talked about contracts, but because I looked him in the eye, I told him that I would “trust” him.
I have just found out in the last few days that he is “dogging” me and his weak excuse is that he didn’t realise he didn’t really need my or my business’s help after all, and the “scope of work” has changed… and somehow he “read it wrong in the beginning”. But I know what’s really going on. Apparently he’ll let me know if he needs more of my free help in the future.
You really never know if you can trust someone until you go through a complete business transaction with them. It always becomes clear at some point.
And then, what are you supposed to do about it? Some people say, “Don’t worry, karma will sort them out”.
Well, after I told this story recently to my father in law, and mentioned that I’m sure karma would take care of him, he told me, “That’s true, but sometimes karma needs a little bit of help.”
@Robert – you write so well! Always entertaining. 🙂
Love the last paragraph – and particularly this bit:
I think I will be putting that into practice today (regrettably).
One of my favourite quotes (Warren Buffet):
“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”
I like that one too Luke – I was tossing up whether to use it, but went with good old Benjamin Franklin instead!
Yeah, that’s a good one 🙂