Addressing the Roman Senate after having conquered Pharnaces II of Pontus, Caesar further insinuated himself into history’s embrace by confining his remarks to what might well be the earliest recorded sound bite: veni, vidi, vici (I came, I saw, I conquered). Three words, twelve letters, and a bravado the size of the Forum.

In the time since, Caesar’s words have come to serve within popular culture as cheeky shorthand for a job well done. I’m relatively sure I remember seeing a Bart Simpson veni, vidi, vici t-shirt a few years back, and if not, well, there’s your moneymaking idea for the week.

To the customercentric business, however, Caesar’s words are guidestone…or epitaph. Bent on exceeding all of your customer’s expectations, how might you react once the job’s done, the survey results are in, and the customer reports, perhaps contentedly enough, that their expectations were merely met: that your crew did arrive, that they did see, and that they did conquer—in short, that they did exactly as you promised they would, no more and no less?

The challenge is clear. Can you truly exceed a customer’s expectations without cheating your promise downward? That prospect may seem daunting, but I say yes you can, and here’s how:

• Toot your own horn: in an industry where all too often promises aren’t made, much less kept, allow your business to be bold with its word. Don’t hesitate to clearly and succinctly remind your customer that you make promises because you intend your work to meet them. “We’re glad to hear that you found our work to merit our word” is a nice, understated way of reminding your customer that you cared enough to promise results and were good enough to back up your word with deed.


• Ask questions: when a customer mentions that you met his or her expectations and leaves off there, don’t shy away from asking how you might have done one better. “How might we improve our service to you?” is one way of mining for that information; why not raise the ante even higher by asking a satisfied customer to tell you something they would have loved from your service this time around? Daring businesses ask daring questions…and often get thought-provoking and actionable answers.


• Be rapid, diligent, and surprising in your follow-through: thank your customer for taking the time to share his or her impressions and make sure that thank you has been sent within 24 hours of receiving the completed survey. More still, address any specific comments completely while also taking the time to surprise your customer by sharing something you gained or learned as a business through completing the project. “Thank you for allowing us to paint your kitchen and dining areas! The design is stellar and we very much enjoyed working within the space; in fact, with your permission we’d love to use a photo or two of the completed cabinetry as a training aid for our newer painters.”

Even as the punchlist has been completed and your house painters sent to their next job, the opportunity to exceed your customer’s expectations remains, its call as resonant as those Latinate words from so long ago. Conquer your tendency to stop short at a completed survey and ‘met’ expectations—be as bold as a Caesar and exceed, exceed, exceed!