You Can Judge a Book by Its Cover

A friend recently told us this story: We had a big final presentation – a sizable mandate for a foundation. We worked hard to prepare, and I thought we did a pretty good job. To my surprise, on the plane back home, I happened to be seated next to a key decision-maker, someone we had just seen in the audience for our presentation. I couldn’t resist asking him how he thought we did. “What do you think our chances are based on the quality of our presentation?” “Oh,” he said, “I can tell you right now. You guys won. You were the only finalist who had our name right on the cover of the book!”

This particular foundation had recently changed its name. Our client, as a matter of course, customized every presentation book with the logo and full name of the prospect, always taking care to double-check this information against the prospect’s website. The name change was minor (to the outside world) but significant (to the foundation). By taking care to respect this important detail, the investment firm implicitly communicated its ability to deliver what people hear a lot about but rarely get: truly customized service.

Moral: Be systematic about the details.