I
received a profanity-laced email last week. It was from an
anonymous dry cleaner accusing me of portraying hard working dry
cleaners in a negative light. Specifically, he called me the
anti-dry-cleaner dry cleaner.
I kinda like how that rolls off the tongue, don't you?
More importantly, I plead guilty as charged.
In my defense, however, I've got to say that I'm not portraying
the dry cleaning industry or any particular dry cleaner in a
negative light.
Instead, I'm portraying the ordinary dry cleaner in a negative
light. And I'm portraying the quality of the product they deliver
to their customers in a negative light - quality of product that
bears absolutely no resemblance whatsoever to the
hyperbolic descriptions of the quality they say they
deliver. Even the $2.50 discount cleaners and the $12.50 per
suit/$2.50 per laundered shirt middle-of-the-road cleaners have no
shame professing their commitment to "top quality work at all
costs."
What this particular dry cleaner believes to be negativity is
actually RAVE FabriCARE's point of view, our perspective as to what
constitutes
true quality dry cleaning and
true quality shirt laundry.
We express this point of view - consistently and unwaveringly -
throughout our website and in all our blog posts. Section after
section. Post after post. And we express this point of view in
simple, down-to-earth, jargon-free, conversational language. Often
comparing what we do as a matter of routine to what ordinary
cleaners do as a matter of routine.
At RAVE FabriCARE, there's no smoke and mirrors. No
misrepresentations, distortions and outright lies.
No
hyperbolic nonsense that punctuates the websites of the
overwhelming majority of ordinary dry cleaners. Just our point of
view. Even if that point of view isn't sugar coated.
At RAVE FabriCARE, we've taken a stand on the issue of quality
of product. Anyone who reads our website or blog posts or uses our
services knows exactly where we stand.
If, in the process, we alienate any potential customers (or even
many dry cleaners), so be it. We've long recognized that we can't
appeal to every demographic and socio-economic background. And that
any attempt to do so guarantees mediocrity.
So we leave it to the 26,000 plus ordinary cleaners out there to
continue trying to be all things to all people. To continue pushing
as many garments as they possibly can through their production
system in the shortest possible time and at the lowest possible
cost. To continue offering coupons, discounts and deals in an
effort to replace those customers who've tried their service and
have never returned. And to continue struggling to differentiate
themselves from all the other cleaners in their geographic market
that offer the same quality of ordinary cleaning as they do.
The simple truth is this: when you try to serve everyone, you
end up serving no one.
How can I help you?