Over the weekend I read Broken Windows, Broken Business by Michael Levine. The title is based on the Rudy Giuliani’s clean up of New York City when he was mayor in the 1990s. In a nutshell, the theory is that if there are broken windows in the buildings of a neighborhood, it sends a message of tolerance. And if the broken windows ar not cleaned up quickly, the neighborhood will decay and more serious and violent crimes will become commonplace.

It all starts with a single “broken window.” Giuliani and the NYC police chief implemented a strict “zero tolerance” policy on crime. Even simple things like jaywalking were not tolerated. Many ridiculed the policy and said it would never work but within a few years, the violent crime rate in NYC had dropped dramatically. Giuliani’s policy was widely praised for this success. (The authors of Freakonomics attribute another factor the drop in violent crime but that’s not the point here.)

Levine argues that the “broken windows” theory applies to any business too. He cites several examples of companies, like K-Mart & American Airlines, that tanked as a result of “Broken Windows Hubris” which means they failed to address (or in some cases even recognize) the broken windows in their businesses.

This is not only about large, behemoth corporations. The author cites bad customer service as the “ultimate broken window.” And that applies to an Internet or Information Business too. Levine talks about expectations vs. realities. Any customer of your business has certain expectations…most of them reasonable and some not so reasonable. But if you fail to at least meet those expectations, your business is headed for disaster. That means in some cases employees or you (if you do your own customer service) can be the biggest “broken window.”

There’s even an entire chapter dedicated to the Internet. Of course simple things like broken links are considered “broken windows” but on a larger scale a website might be the first (and only) exposure a prospect or customer has with your business. If there are “broken windows”, the likelihood of losing that prospect or customer for good are increased…and the worst part is that you probably won’t even know it. For example, if someone is looking for contact information or FAQs, they should be easy to find.

It’s a short, easy-to-read book (162 pages). I recommend you march on down to the local public library and check it out like I did.

Tags: Create Your Own Products, Success

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