Great service is rare. Not just a handshake and a smile. Those are standard. The bare minimum.

Great service is when you have to restrain yourself from shouting ’I love you, Man’ to the person who just repaired your bike in less than 12 hours for half the cost of local competitors.

The value of reliable, quality service is unquantifiable yet easily recognizable.

Understanding of value of excellent service is the unfortunate result of many teeth-gritting experiences that ended with the mumbling of the old saying ‘fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice…,’ well, you know the rest. These experiences serve as reminders of the value of great service but more importantly of our responsibility to reward those who provide it.

Rewarding the workers who put in the time and effort to delight their customers is our collective responsibility to one another. The providers of outstanding service deserve our attention, time, and of course, money. Equally, the responsibility that we share is to the other members of our community, who deserve our recommendations.

And how do we reward good customer service and fulfill that responsibility? With our trust.

trust noun \ˈtrəst\: assured reliance on the character, ability, strength or truth of someone or something.

The relationships that we build with our family, friends, and neighbors are built on trust. We trust that our neighbor will look after our home when we are out of town, the same way we trust our friends to lend a hand during our next move.

By referring the best service providers to our friends and family we are rewarding their hard work with our trust. Sharing positive recommendations does us all a great service and fulfills our responsibility to each other.