by Diego Hodge
If you provide a service to someone in which you have a relationship (friend or family) should the person expect a discount or an increase of service value?
This was a question posed to me during a conversation with Julia, my wife. I would love your thoughts as well so please comment.
Here are my thoughts on it:
If you are providing a similar service and have the ability to offer a discount without jeopardizing the value of the service that you provide then there is nothing wrong with providing a discount to a friend or relative.
The person providing the service should not charge a discount based on trying to help a person out but provide a discount on the basis of them being able to afford to provide the discount with the bi-product being the person receiving the service will benefit. You can not effectively help anyone while at the detriment of yourself.
Ground rules should be set up front (especially with friends and family) as it pertaines to the service fee amount and the specific expectations of both parties. If setting specific ground rules are avoided because of assumptions or fear of offending the other party then someone in the transaction is setting themselves up for a possible disappointment if an issue arises. It will not matter the amount a person pays if the paying party is not given the result he or she is looking for. The paying party will complain as if they paid the amount without the discount which could end in a major shift of the relationship.
Price is never the determining factor if value is given beyond the reasonable price. I judge cell phone companies based on the customer service aspect than any other feature. I would rather pay more for a cell phone service that can resolve a service issue in their customer resolution department in a timely fashion than to pay less and have to speak to a customer service department that takes days and numerous transfers to solve an issue.
When you offer True Value, the value of your service compared to that of a competitor, price is very seldom the issue especially to a person that you have a relationship with. True Value with a discounted price is not to be seen as a cheaper price but it is to be seen as an affordable admission price to experience superior service.
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