The Disappointment of LESS

None of us like to be disappointed, but if we are alive, then we will always be dealing with some sort of personal disappointment. Today, I want to address the business side of disappointment and ask you, “How do you deal with companies that disappoint you?” My answer is simple: I take my business somewhere else. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

What are You Promising Them?

When I was getting towards the end of finishing writing my last book, one of the publishing houses I was considering working with asked that we set-up at face-to-face meeting to discuss it in detail. In the meeting I encountered an excellent question from their senior editor. We were discussing the book title, chapter arrangement, and final content when she asked, “Rob, what are you promising the reader your book will do for them?” She went on to say that, “Every page you write should deliver on that promise, therefore, everything should be predicated around what you are promising the reader.”

Quiet Abandonment

91% of customers who are unhappy with a brand will leave without complaining. This process of ‘QUIET ABANDONMENT’ can adversely affect a company’s image, sales and certainly their profits. Customers today, don’t even give you a chance to fix the problem. WHY? Here is one reason why. 79% of consumers who complain about a poor customer experience, are ignored. Customers are getting so conditioned to “nothing being done” when they complain … that they have quit complaining; they just leave. They quietly abandon doing business with you.

Are You Keeping Your Promise

I had the opportunity to speak at the Customer Service Revolution Conference held in Cleveland this week, put on by the DiJulius Group. Over 700 people from companies throughout the United States and Canada were there to learn how they can deliver the best customer service possible. In preparing for my program, I dove deep into my books, articles and notes on everything I had written and read about customer service. I thought it might be helpful if I shared a few of the things I found.

I Will Never Do Business with You Again

That is a powerful statement and a very final one. What in the world could cause a customer to say that? I find it very confusing why companies persist in doing things that customers hate. No customer wants to hear, “We are experiencing unusually high call volumes.” What that says to customers is, senior management has failed to employ enough staff to properly service incoming calls. It didn’t matter what time they call the company, they will ALWAYS get the same message. A simple way to solve that problem is to quit doing business with them. 33% of Americans say they’ll consider switching companies after just a single instance of poor service.

Corporate Survival

The problem with most companies today is their employees see the people walking into their place of business or ordering on-line as JUST ANOTHER CUSTOMER. Companies forget how excited they were the day they had their first customer. After years of success, customers are taken for granted. Most of the people working for them weren’t around when they had their first customer. Most employees don’t really give much thought to the fact that customers pay their salaries along with paying for everything else.