Editor’s Note: Jason Payne is a former Wall Street research analyst who recently founded the Groundwar Group – a management consulting firm providing premier corporate advisory services, leadership training solutions, and investment analysis capabilities for business leaders and investors around the world.
Mr. Payne pens this ongoing “Diary of a Startling Startup” series to help our entire Mogul community learn from his new venture’s tech-related successes and failures.
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From Jason Payne, Management Consultant & Leadership Coach …
At the conclusion of last Friday’s post I mentioned a woman named Jari, who had proactively called my cell phone and introduced herself as my new “Web Coach” from iPage.
This phone call occurred shortly after I took the plunge and procured her company’s assistance with building Groundwar Group’s new corporate website. In today’s installment of my ongoing Diary of a Startling Startup, I describe our pleasantly surprising “first date” with each other, including Jari’s generous decision to bolster my checking account by almost $100.
First, she assured me that her services were free of charge, and she quickly explained to me that her goal was “Nothing less than helping you and your clients make a ton of money.”
Of course, I was initially wary of Jari. (Hey, that rhymes!) As described in my recent introduction to this series, I began my latest entrepreneurial journey feeling quite insecure about the entire website-creation process, and I truly had no idea who to trust with each step of the process. But I have heard horror stories from other business owners and investors who trusted “the wrong people” – and I was determined to avoid suffering a similar fate.
Moreover, I tend to be suspicious of any strangers who make unsolicited calls to my cell phone – especially those who promise to help me make money. In fact, if Jari had introduced herself with any other title, such as “Account Representative” or “Sales Agent”, then I probably would have terminated the call after only a few seconds.
But the friendly and articulate woman from iPage introduced herself as my “Web Coach”, and even though I had never heard of a “Web Coach” before, my wariness and technological insecurity was slightly offset by a hint of subconscious relief:
“A web coach, eh?” I thought to myself cautiously…
“Well, I usually hang-up on this sort of call, but if there’s any area in which I need coaching, it’s this one …”
“Besides, I recently paid $19.95 to iPage to obtain ’1-on-1 assistance’ from a web coach (whatever that means), using something called their ‘Jumpstart Service’ (whatever that is)…”
“So lemme stay on the phone for a few minutes and see where this goes …”
Breaking the Ice
Jari the Web Coach repeated her assurance that I would not be charged any additional money for her assistance. (And providing this reassurance was a smart move on her part, because even though she had mentioned this fact in her initial introduction, I needed to hear it again – like the chorus of an intriguing new song.)
But then Jari really surprised me. After less than two minutes of introductory chit-chat with me, my web coach confessed that many of iPage’s new clients unknowingly order too many products and services in their first attempt to build a new website – thereby “wasting valuable capital” that could otherwise be invested into different areas of their fledgling businesses!
And Jari suspected that I might have already fallen into this expensive trap!
My web coach then politely inquired about my availability to continue chatting for a few more minutes, because she wanted to investigate my eligibility for a refund on several of the recent purchases I had made through iPage’s website!
Needless to say, I stayed on the phone. My initial cynicism was quickly melting away and being replaced with a profound sense of gratitude for Jari’s helpful hand-holding.
She asked me to describe exactly what Groundwar Group’s business is all about, and what I am hoping to obtain from my new relationship with iPage.
“Well,” I explained to my web coach, “I recently retired from my career as a full-time investment analyst, because I think there is a better way to use the various skills and insights I have accumulated during more than a decade of business research on Wall Street …”
“My historical successes in the realm of business research are now being supplemented with unlimited global leadership training through Uruguay’s multinational Geronimo Center for Innovation & Leadership, and this unique combination has already compelled several businesses and investors to hire me as their management consultant …”
“I have created Groundwar Group as my corporate vehicle for capitalizing on this exciting professional momentum. But I need as much help as possible with my new firm’s website, because I have never done anything like this before …”
“I don’t know how to build a website, but I know Groundwar Group needs a ‘digital front door’ for online interactions with my new clients. And I don’t know the first thing about how to work with iPage’s technology, but I know how to provide premier advisory services for business leaders and investors – so I need help advertising these helpful capabilities on the web!”
An Unexpected Reimbursement
Based on this information, Jari the Web Coach thoughtfully paused our conversation (for approximately 30 seconds) to review my recent purchases from iPage …
… and she determined that I had indeed purchased too many items in my initial transaction.
Specifically, Jari identified a total of $83.73 in unnecessary charges, which represented approximately 80% of my original $105.72 bill!
To help salvage my pride, Jari complimented my “foresight” on several of these unnecessary purchases …
“Most of these extraneous products will eventually be vital for Groundwar Group, once your firm’s website is up and running,” she kindly informed me.
“But for now, it seems silly to charge you for most of this stuff, especially since we need to spend more time exploring the nuances of your vision and your business.”
With that, my web coach promptly returned all unnecessary charges to my personal checking account! Right there on the phone with me!
Flabbergasted by this unprecedented turn of events, I thanked Jari profusely and confessed to her that I have never (ever) experienced anything like this before from a vendor.
I also made a mental note that every one of Groundwar Group’s consulting clients should receive a friendly “no strings attached” follow-up phone call within 48 hours of signing their contracts – just because it felt so refreshing for me to receive this sort of hospitality from my iPage web coach.
Jari then asked if I would be interested in scheduling a future phone call with her, in order for us to further explore iPage’s ability to build “exactly the sort of website your business needs”.
I practically shouted “YES, PLEASE!” at the top of my lungs. (In fact, I was already prepared to proactively request such a follow-up phone call, even if my web coach had not invited me to do so.)
Onward & Upward
We agreed to reconnect with each other for a follow-up phone call on Valentines Day 2014 – although Jari humorously warned me that her husband “might get suspicious”.
Finally, after laughing together at the absurdity of an iPage-inspired telephone romance, I asked Jari if there was any way for me to conclude our initial chat with a message of commendation to her team’s manager.
“I have been pleasantly surprised and thoroughly impressed throughout both of my interactions with iPage and its representatives,” I confessed to Jari at the end of our call.
“Can you forward me to your manager’s voicemail, or to some other appropriate party, so I can put in a good word for you? So I can tell iPage how delighted I am with my experience as a new customer?”
My web coach was happy to oblige, and we both parted ways with full hearts, looking forward to our upcoming “date” on Valentines Day.
And my heart wasn’t the only thing that was full. Thanks to Jari’s helpful auditing of my recent transaction, I found myself with almost $100 of unexpected cash in my checking account – so my wallet was feeling quite full as well!
Don’t Rush – Don’t rush through your initial purchase of website-related services, as I did at the conclusion of my introduction to iPage.
Don’t Worry – If you decide to join me in “taking the plunge” with iPage, don’t worry too much about making mistakes along the way (as I was doing), because your iPage web coach can help you proceed appropriately through each step of the process.
Don’t Sit Quietly on Valuable Insights – Do you have valuable insights about how I should proceed from here? Do you know of any other website-related vendors who offer helpful web-coaching services? If so, please post a comment below and share your valuable insights with the rest of us!