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Human Rights  » Sure Fire Ways To Drive Customers Away!

Sure Fire Ways To Drive Customers Away!

Call it a blind spot. Call it regimented thinking. Call it

the-way-we-have-always-done-it. But by any name, there are

actions and practices that far too many businesses engage in

that can unknowingly drive customers away.

When I observe such practices, I move from being angry to just

plain sad. Really sad. Because the truth of the matter is that

no one CONSCIOUSLY set out to ruin my day. No one sat in a board

room and dreamt up procedures that would have us leaving in

droves. No one woke up and said, "I can hardly wait to make you

miserable." It happened "because". Because the truth of the

matter is that it takes courage to stop and ask the critical

question: Does this serve our customer? Our member? Our

community?

We all "know" the rules of service. But sadly, sometimes we

don't take the time to think through just what our actions might

be do or say to the customer. Here are some actions guaranteed

to drive folks from the doors of an enterprise. It's time for

all of us to sit up and notice!

Over promise and under deliver.

Bring people to the conference with the promise of cutting edge

material. Lure attendees into thinking that the hotel is a

four-star marvel. Tell customers that they'll have all the

material they need in three days. Promise the meeting planner

that the press kit will go out overnight. Then sit back and

watch. Really watch. If it isn't true 100% of the time, it's a

bait and switch promise.

Take the idea of "cutting edge material". I've attended

conferences in which the only cutting edge was the serving knife

on a buffet table. Same ideas. Same methodology. Same format.

Get a clue! Shake it up. Be provocative. If we say it, we better

deliver.

How about that four-star hotel? Brochure looks great. The

conference walk through is stunning. But then, could that

ghastly-looking luncheon plate REALLY be the same chicken

marsala you were served in the tasting? And, how about the fact

that the hotel "forgot" to tell you that the major dining room

would be undergoing renovation. Yikes!

The three-day guarantee. If you can't deliver it all the time,

it's not true! Now, perhaps Three Day Blinds has reversed its

practices, but years ago, I ordered window coverings for our new

house. My mother was coming to visit us over Christmas and I

needed shades. Alas, the third day came and went. I discovered

that only "some" shades are three-day, not all. Beware of the

implied promise.

Never walk the talk.

The brochure for the conference said, "a celebration of

members", a "community that listens." Too bad it didn't play out

in reality.

The setting is New Orleans. A couple thousand folks have

gathered for the "celebration" and the "community". Alas, the

reality is another fact. I discover that people are invited to

parties based upon their status in the organization. The

luncheon session I am addressing has some 50 "important people"

file into the banquet hall and take their places on a stage that

is three tiers deep. Talk about a "we"/ "they" set up. I am

told, "This is the way we have always done it." The intent to

"honor" these 50 people was to have hundreds watch them eat and

to also set up the boundary between the "us" and the "them".

Come on. There are a few more creative ways to showcase the "us"

that is far more inclusive, educational, and community building

than a camera shot of folks eating. I end up addressing an

audience while have my back to 50 plus people. It's rude,

off-putting, and the exact opposite of what the organization, in

all good intentions, wishes to create.

Our lives had better mirror the words we use and the beliefs we

profess to all. Otherwise, we're merely impersonators. I watched

a very well known speaker who specializes in relationship

building turn into a snarling, demanding customer who treated

the flight attendants like personal servants. How many

disbelievers were created on that day?

Make technology your primary form of communication.

Make sure there's a voice mail doom loop from which someone will

never emerge to actually speak with a live human. Conduct all

business via e-mail, assuming that a message sent is a message

received. And while you're at it, hit send as soon as a message

is written.

These three practices can doom any business relationship.

Amazing isn't it: having a person answer the phone can actually

be a competitive advantage! How easy do we make it for people to

do business with us via the telephone or even our web site? I

tried to book a reservation in a lovely hotel, only to be

treated to a lovely online tour of the property without ever

finding a contact number!

E-mail is great for data but not perfect for relationship

building or critical pieces of information. In fact, often the E

in e-mail stands for escalation and error. Two colleagues almost

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became bitter enemies over rapid fire e-mails that had the sting

of a viper and the warmth of the Arctic. Neither thought to pick

up the phone and talk things out. Thus, the lop-sided "chats"

turned into internecine warfare. Talk about beating folks up!!

I discovered fascinating information about a client when we

talked through my normal pre-program survey rather than depend

upon an electronic transmission. I had thought my online survey

was a time saving device. Instead, what it became was a

gatekeeper, preventing me from digging deeper into an issue.

Likewise, multiple choice answers on written or online customer

service surveys will never result in information of substantive

depth.

Forget the wisdom of the outer circle.

In organizational life, there's always an "inner circle" of

power and control. Boards of Directors wield it. So do powerful

departments. When practices and policies come only from the

inner circle, the rank and file is not only unheard, but can

turn its back on the organization. Members leave associations

when they feel discounted and "not in the know". Never say

"thank you".

Mother was right when she made us kids write notes to relatives

after Christmas. It's a forgotten habit that can go a long way

to letting people feel appreciated. Likewise, pick up the phone

and call a client or member who has a complaint and THANK THEM

for making that complaint known. You'll discover a huge dividend

in goodwill after they recover from the shock of your call.

Three Practices to KEEP customers and members.

Common courtesy isn't common. Be uncommon.

Service is an unnatural act. It takes emphasis away from

ourselves and gives it to others. Be unnatural.

Time is the only non-renewal resource. Never waste people's time.

Hope I haven't wasted yours!

(c) 2005, McDargh Communications. Publication rights granted to

all venues so long as article and by-line are reprinted intact

and all links are made live.

About the author:

Named by Executive Excellence Magazine as one of the top 100

thought leaders in business, Eileen McDargh, CSP, CPAE authored

one of the first books on work/life balance. Eileen is an award

winning professional speaker, consultant and facilitator. Find

free articles, surveys, book reviews and more at her professional speaker

website.