“WE GIVE GREAT SERVICE AND OUR CUSTOMERS LOVE US”
How many times have I heard this or a derivation of that line from an independent? I have yet to meet an owner that said “we have lousy service and our customers hate us”, but there are companies out there that deliver poor service and little or no follow up and yes their customers hate them. Most independents have a hard time defining quality service and how to measure it. Most use the telephone as an indicator of their service delivery and some use the number of cancellations as a barometer of customer satisfaction. There is nothing wrong with either, but the question requires deeper analysis. While the majority of independents honestly believe that they give good service, it is all subjective with no objective measurement to back their thoughts.
Despite our best efforts to argue to the contrary, the waste collection, landfill and recycling business is a commodity business. Think about it - your trucks look pretty much like your...