There is a saying that time & tide wait for none. Time, while continuously aging, leaves several lessons behind. Sometimes it takes a long time to understand all the lessons. For example, couple of years back, I was struggling with my team-mate and manager to fix an issue in the system installed at the site. We were not able to understand the issue and the system was down due to that. The site was somewhere on the outskirts of the city. We were not able to find the issue with the system as well as a decent place to grab a bite. It was a long & hot day. The ordeal continued the next day also, and finally we could figure out the root cause, something beyond our control. However we suggested some external patch and the system worked. The extended working hours were common on the project. Our customer had launched a new building project and our solution was part of it. So we were almost grilled day in & out to ensure that the system would remain up and running.
Years went by and very recently, I was sitting in the comforts of a five star hotel. I was in the audience section and the same customer was part of an ongoing panel discussion. In the fully-packed conference room, our customer was telling about the future of buildings, constructions & home automation. Out of the blue, he recommended features of our company's product and its relevance to the Indian home automation segment. I was dumb-folded on this open support. It's always great to hear your customer recommending your product/services to others. I also realized the golden moment was result of the hard-work not just by my team, but everyone involved in the project, right from the marketing to the logistics guy.
It is very common to get a angry or dissatisfied customer in an early stage start-up. Your product is still not fully functional, it has been sold in the PoC stage, the customer is expecting some other features... There could be thousands of reasons beyond your control and you may left with annoying the small (or in same cases only) customer base you have. The best way to handle this situation is to face the issue, listen and try to understand your customer's concern. The key is not to give-up. Keep trying to fix the issue and finally fix it. Be genuinely interested in customers' issues and make sure that your product/services are upgraded to their needs. Now it may sound like a very obvious advise, but in case of a start-up, it is the most important one. You may be designing something really cool, but if it doesn't solve the purpose of your customer, be prepared to take an alternate route. Be flexible and stay focused on the customer.
There are no 'bad' customers, only 'good' teachers when it comes to an early stage start-up. Even we have improvised upon several features and processes due to the tough customers. You will realize the worth of your efforts years later when the brand is established. Always remember that there are many start-ups which struggle to get even one customer. Feel blessed to have one and make sure that you retain the customer.
If 2014 has been a tough years for your start-up, stay focused on customers' needs. And if you have done a decent business in 2014, stay committed to the customer base you have developed. Stay focused & stay committed because it's all worth it :)
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