Some people say you know who your friends are in times of trouble. Trouble has a way of sorting out the sincere from the pretenders, the trusted from the wagon jumpers, or the bold from the timid. People with this attitude, for example, give up when the going gets tough, switch their loyalties, or conveniently forget certain details.
We notice similar behavior from service providers who are in it for the money, and don’t give a damn about their customers. They make wonderful promises to get the sale but once you have signed on their tune changes. The broadband host who promised 99.9% uptime, now refuses to return your phone calls after you reported an unreasonable frequency of service interruptions.
The same goes for Internet marketers who promise a “no questions asked 100 percent money-back guarantee.†After using their product for a few days, you know you bought their hype and not a reliable or useful program. You send several emails to their address seeking a refund, but you get no reply.
This also applies to ISPs who close your account without warning because of bogus spam complaints they get about you sending unsolicited commercial emails (Spam). Instead of finding out the facts they assume you are guilty, and tell you to take your business elsewhere. This could mean lost customer information – the lifeline of your business – or heavy fines under the new Spam Act passed by Congress.
There will also be trouble in your personal life or your business. That is a given. But you can protect yourself from bringing more trouble than you can bear by choosing your friends carefully. Choosing your business partners responsibly, and choosing your data processing providers only after you have thoroughly looked into their company’s history. You can find almost anything about anyone on the Internet.
Choosing your friends and suppliers wisely means you will have them around when you need them.
