I like a surprise just as much as the next person, and the best way for a company to surprise me is to deliver something that I was not expecting.

I have certain expectations about a business whether I consciously think about them or not. I am sure you are no different, and each time you deal with a company there are just certain things you expect to be the case. If a company were getting catalog printing done, I would expect that the catalogs they send me have great range of products for selection and the process of ordering will be made fast and easy.

If that isn't the case I'll take my time and money elsewhere, but if they do provide me with what I'm expecting, I'll be pleased, if not surprised. You can get plenty of business by honoring what people expect from you, but are you really doing as well as you think you are? Are you getting as much attention as you could from customers, and are you doing the best marketing job possible by just living up to expectations?

The answer is no, and while you can survive by keeping things simple, you won't grow as fast or as much as you could by going above and beyond. This is what really makes a lasting impression on people, and the best way to turn an average customer into a loyal one.

However, how do you go beyond these expectations of your target customers, especially if you are uncertain and unknowing of what they are? Well, the first step is to figure out what they are expecting.

Continuing with the example of catalog printing, the first step towards understanding these expectations is to look at all the other companies in your industry. Where do any expectations come from? They are usually derived from what a person has experienced before, which would be the kind of service they got from the other companies they have tried and become a customer of.

Take the time to really research how the other companies treat their customers, and try to find some way you can do it better. You might even poll people to get a better feel for what they expect in your company and what they are looking for. That way you can be certain that you give them more than they expect.

I cannot really sit here and tell you exactly what you need to do in order to improve on expectations, because I do not know what those expectations are. Each industry is different, and I expect different things from different companies. The right kind of research is the only thing that will be able to tell you what you need to accomplish, but you cannot even get that far if you are not trying to give people more.

That is the real point with this article: to ensure that everyone reading will become aware of the benefits that come from surpassing expectations and that everyone does their best to achieve this.