Restaurant people will tell you that the worst thing a customer can do is have a bad meal and not SAY anything about it. It prevents the establishment from making it right for the customer. The damage gets worse, because the customer doesn’t usually return AND they tell their friends what they thought about the food.
Automotive sales people are taught that every customer knows at least another 100 friends and relatives, and that one customer can be a valuable source of leads and referrals for future automotive sales. If the salesperson does a good job
People talk about service, both good and bad.
Businesses large and small should think over these examples, and build customer service policies to support them.
Here are some possibilities:
Monitor satisfaction with each transaction. A technology manufacturer recently shipped back an item to a customer that had been returned for warranty replacement. It was less than 30 days old. Didn’t work correctly right out of the box and the customer was upset and frustrated at having to pack it and pay out of pocket to ship it back.
Weeks passed. The customer fumed. Several unsatisfactory phone calls later, the item finally arrived at her doorstep. The instruction manual was missing. The box contained only the product and routine shipping slip.
Missed opportunity? A chance for management in that multi-million dollar company to find out more about the warranty-return experience, by including a person’s name, a toll-free number or a postpaid card asking for feedback. Message sent? This experience left the feeling that the company just wants to sell more new product, without regard for the user experience.
That customer will NEVER purchase a product with that particular brand name and will end up telling others about her experience. Might not matter too much for a $60 consumer item? Consider how the same experience could impact profits if it was priced at $1,000 and multipled by dozens of customers.
Make individual employees agents of change. In the above example, after being frustrated by voice mail menus and inaccurate information, the customer firmly asked to speak to a supervisor. She was left on hold for a long, long time, adding to her agitation. At that point, the issue should have been given top priority, and a helpful, soothing voice should have come on the line to resolve the problem. If employees in critical positions are empowered to prioritize customer needs, whether in person or on the phone, a bad situation could be salvaged and less damage done.
Model customer suggestions. Once a business acts upon a customer suggestion about a product or service, they should BRAG about it to other customers. Creating a sign, printing a label, or sending out an envelope stuffer can help tell the story… “Thanks to Gloria in Kansas City, this is how we pack our widgets now!”
Does it make any sense to advertise new customers but not keep existing ones? Is it worth risking losing even more customers due to the bad experiences of a few? With a little time and attention, management can add a lot of warmth to the customer experience and earn a reputation as a business that loves its customers.
