Originally posted on Compass Consulting & Solutions – Paul Nottingham
Have you ever heard of a Parable about 3 blind men who were asked to 
describe an elephant?? They were each led one by one to an enormous African Elephant and asked to describe it using the only means at their disposal. Their sense of touch. Each man was guided to a different part of the Elephant and each described it as you would imagine- differently.
The first Man was directed to the Elephants Trunk. Wherein he described the Elephant as a Great serpent writhing and curling around his arms and a large growing girth along its body.
The 2nd man was directed to the Elephants Great Ear and described it as a great flapping Leaf. It could flap and create a strong wind.
The 3rd Blind man was seated on the ground and told to examine the great beast’s leg and foot. He described a mighty tree trunk without roots that could lift itself off the ground, and had a great flat base that surely supported a giant tree.
Now that I have shared this story here is how it applies to you and your business;
The Elephant was described differently by the three men because it was perceived differently by all 3. They only saw a brief portion of the animal and as such could only make judgments about it based upon what limited area they had been exposed to.
They Perceived it differently and to them their interpretation was the Real Elephant.
In Short Perception is REALITY. In the real world how you and your business is perceived by your customers is YOUR REALITY. Will it be the total picture of your offering and Worth, in many cases no-and that is with all 5 senses working for most Customers. Not everyone will know that you work hard to train and produce a consistent product and experience. Or that you pay extra for higher quality products because it is important to you to offer the best quality at a fair price. They don’t know about your community involvement or that you value their patronage more than they can realize. Your customers only know what is presented to them by your team on this visit. So how can you show them how unique your offering is compared to your competition?? Start with how you welcome them to your business. FACE to Face and with a smile. Always being consistent In your Culture, Service and Product offerings with customers being treated the same way every time, will go along way toward making sure your customers’ perception of you and your business will be a great one!