Expectation. It comes up everywhere, everyday. Turns out, it’s a word with powerful emotional outcomes. It’s a belief about what might happen in the future. The idea stems from expectationem, the Latin word meaning “an awaiting.”
From an early age, we await what we hope or don’t hope will happen. I expected to stay close with my best friends forever. I expected adults to know everything; for presidents to be honest; to never make it in business; for prayers to be answered; my younger brother to always be here; to never grow old.
If you grow up with high expectations, you think something good will come your way. But if keep your expectations low, maybe you won’t be too disappointed. As I look at my life, it’s amazing how many events were all linked to expectations. To be honest, as I grew older, I tried to protect myself by mostly having low expectations. Because when I did have great expectations, they too often fell short.
How about you? Does your day become a bad one because of high expectations? Or, maybe they were just unrealistic. Optimists can see the good in even the worst outcomes, where pessimists expect bad outcomes in any situation. You’ve probably heard the saying, “Expect the best, but prepare for the worst.” How about, “I have no regrets in my life.” Really?
Expectations are found everywhere in business, especially with ROI (return on investment).
Business owners and leaders come to us with a mixed bag of expectations. Some have never worked with a marketing firm and can only go on perceptions, or other feedback. Some have had experience as a client with other firms. After 24 years of leading this business, I am still amazed by their wide range of expectations.
As David cited in his latest blog, “…the low opinion that Americans have of politicians: just 6% trust Congress to act with integrity. Only one other institution ranked lower: advertisers and marketers. They scored 4%.” That’s LOW expectation!
After seeing that, you’d think that most clients would meet us with their cars running in the parking lot.
Business leaders who share this feeling may come to us because they’ve had a bad experience with another firm(s), and feel the need to try again. In fact, one client actually said, “I’ve hired and fired 26 marketing people or agencies before you” in just four years! And our newest client actually waited to be disappointed, and then wrote, “Finally. Thank you.” after our first month of working together.
It’s better to under-promise and over-deliver.
But it’s also so much harder. Every business wants better results; more customers or clients; more success, etc. Your reputation has to really precede you if you understate your ability to help someone, or deliver on what you promise. The vast majority of clients want confidence, assurance, even bravado! They’re risking large sums of money and need it to achieve the ROI…they expect.
I like to ask clients upfront: “If you could have the best results from our work and relationship, what would that look like?” The answers are interesting. Then I add, “What are your expectations in working with us?”
The response is always quite insightful.
By the way, we never became number 27. Well, not yet, anyway.
“Expectation is the root of all heartache.”
– Shakespeare