If you took a moment to consider your particular industry, you may find that like most there has never been another era of such rapid advancement driven by technology than this one.

In two very short decades we went from a system of mostly paper and copper wire phones to digital everything, including phones. An ad in the Yellow Pages was part of the marketing budget just two decades ago. When was the last time you saw a Yellow Pages? Rows of filing cabinets are now replaced with a server or two, either on premise or in the cloud, making those files accessible from anywhere. The Rolodex you once relied on now lives in your contacts on your computer and phone. Many of the standard business tools of the 90’s are mere relics today. Meanwhile, paper was king for generations and today we send emails with footers imploring those in receipt to not print said email so as not to waste paper. Things have changed. And expectations have changed as well.

People expect every business to have a website they go to, to either make a purchase or get some initial information before engaging any further. They expect that website to be easy to navigate, render well on their smart phone, and to have information they are looking for. Those more interested than most in what your company does will gladly fill out a form in order to download an interesting report or register for an intriguing webinar. They expect for an email address or Contact Us form to be readily available should they have any questions they have at the moment.

When engaging with your business, a client expects that emails will be responded to promptly. They expect to be able to call and reach their representative relatively easily. They expect to be able to exchange and transfer documents with ease and have questions about their account answered quickly and accurately. They expect that any and all projects you are working on for them will be ready on time and under budget, and that the threat of loss of any or all parts of that project not be present in any manner. Many expectations are the same as they have always been, but today those expectations are met differently.

How are you meeting these expectations? Are you following your industry practices, or on the leading edge? Where do you think you excel and where do you think you can improve? Answering these questions can create significant change in your business.