This morning I wanted to do two relatively simple things.
The first was to make a claim for a damaged car key. The second was to obtain replacement QR codes so that I could return some broadband equipment.
Neither should have been particularly memorable.
Several telephone conversations, numerous security questions, repeated explanations, requests for documents and an impressive selection of hold music later, I began to wonder whether I should start taking notes.
Actually, I did. Because there is a marketing lesson in all of this.
When I called my key-cover provider, I found myself explaining three times how the key had been damaged. Eventually I was asked to send copies of my car lease and insurance documents. Ironically, the one thing I had carefully found before calling, the unique number I needed to use for a claim, was never requested.
Then came my broadband provider.
I needed replacement QR codes to return equipment. I’d been given a telephone number specifically to deal with this, but none of the options offered actually covered what I needed.
So what did I select?
“If you’re thinking of leaving us…”
Suddenly, getting through to a human being seemed considerably more achievable.
It’s funny, until you think about what this means for our own businesses.
Every obstacle costs goodwill
Most businesses work incredibly hard to attract new customers. We advertise. We network. We post on social media. We offer introductory deals. We follow up enquiries.
But how much attention do we give to what happens after somebody becomes a customer?
Every unnecessary form, unanswered email, confusing instruction and “I’ll just transfer you to another department”spends a little of the goodwill we’ve worked so hard to earn.
One frustrating experience probably won’t lose a loyal customer.
But frustration accumulates.
Eventually a competitor appears at precisely the moment your customer thinks:
“I really cannot face dealing with this again.”
And that’s when customer retention becomes customer acquisition: for somebody else.
Try being your own customer
There’s a very simple exercise every business can do.
Phone your own number. Send an enquiry through your website. Try to find your opening hours. Request a quote. Find out how to complain. Try to cancel something.
Better still, ask somebody who doesn’t know your systems to do it.
Where do they get stuck? How many clicks does it take? How often do they have to repeat information they’ve already supplied? Can they reach an actual person when something doesn’t fit neatly into one of your predetermined boxes?
We naturally design processes around what makes life easier for our business.
The customer experiences them from completely the opposite direction.
And perhaps that’s the lesson from my morning spent listening to hold music:
Good marketing gets people through the door. Good customer service makes sure they don’t spend the next hour looking for the exit.
Have you had a customer service experience like this recently? Leave a comment below and tell me about it.
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