Somewhere, sometimes, you have to do things you don’t get paid for, says Mike McKinley, consultant and president of Alive! Alive! Associates. “Do it in the hope you’ll be paid back later. You have to go the extra mile.”
McKinley’s rousing and upbeat address, “If We Fail to Change, We Fail,” was given twice during the Automotive Distribution Network’s National Convention in Nashville, Tenn.
“Why do businesses fail?” McKinley asked. “Because we don’t feel good about who we are, what we do and who the customer is.” Instead of merely fostering customers who are “loyal,” all business owners should strive to create “customer advocates.”
“Customer advocates are hell bent on getting business for you,” he said. “And they’re cool.” Advocates make pitches for your business because they’ve had such a good experience themselves they’re willing to tout your virtues wherever they go, McKinley said.
McKinley urged attendees how to operate their business. “Act like every day is opening day.”