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Customer Service

Best Lessons in Customer Loyalty from the Worst Customer Service

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It takes a much more resources and time to make up for the lousy customer service than to provide a good one. For obvious reasons, service excellence is a top priority for companies, but it is not realistic to nail it every time. People have less patience in the fast-paced way of modern living, and are quick to switch sides if they are not satisfied. You can learn a lot from a bad customer service, but it is preferable to learn from the mistakes of others.

I’m calling a manager

There are many communication pitfalls in the business world. Some companies fail to listen to their customers and they stick to rigid models instead. Some businesses like cable companies simply do not feel the urgency to improve the quality of customer service.  How many times were you a bit shocked with the results of a visit to the hairstylist? Well, customer’s requests are not always satisfied, and it cases such as this, it cannot be repaired right away.

Prejudging or humiliating customers can be devastating for the company. In a time where every other person uses social networks, bad news and consumer experience spread like wildfire. Even when facing an angered person, hanging up or ignoring is not an option. Quite often, these situations are solved by calling someone more experienced, like a manager or executive. But, they are not always there to save the day.

Put on a smile

Thus, business organizations must equip employees with tools and knowledge to solve problems and answer questions. A lot of people have encountered workers saying: “That is not my department” or “I am new here”. That is unacceptable because it reveals the flaws in service quality. All employees share the responsibility to get the job done right, and one incident can cost you a loyal customer.

Even companies with thousands of employees must keep track of their performance and how do they represent the enterprise. Poor work performance of one worker affects the reputation of the whole company. And without a positive image, you cannot hope to attract new or keep the old customers. This is what some banks and financial services like American Express do not understand.

With that said, safe money transfer method is something of the utmost importance in a digital age. Those companies losing people’s money or unintentionally leaking their information lose the trust of the customers. Enterprises that want a secure platform tend to use options such as an escrow account, credit cards, or services like Amazon Payments. Only when you show care for both the customers and their money you can hope to prosper.

Under impression

Each company claims that it cares about customers a great deal. But, clients don’t always have a positive experience.   First impressions are sometimes the last ones you get the chance to make on someone. We are not talking just about face-to-face ones. Such impressions can be based on marketing campaigns, social media presence, premises, etc. People like to make assumptions, for better or worse. A customer wants to be greeted as he walks in the door. He wishes to hear “Good day”, “Thank you” and “Goodbye”, more often than “I’m sorry” or “I can’t help you”.

About the Author

Sonya is a passionate business consultant from Melbourne, Australia. She has a wide range of interests, including online writing, technology trends and marketing in general.