Conventional Wisdom
How often do we see companies who live by the noble creed:
The Customer is ALWAYS right?
Is it possible that this approach could be self-defeating by ultimately damaging the commitment of the very customer service people who they hope to inspire?
Who’s ‘Always Right’?
The Roman Catholic Church applies the
always right or
do no wrong concept to one living person, The Pope. By church doctrine, His Holiness is incapable of error in matters of faith and morals and is therefore
infallible. History has shown that the infallibility of one person, no matter how qualified, can be difficult for some (like the Greek Orthodox) to embrace.
Yet, how many businesses grant infallibility status to ANYONE who pays them?Makes your people wonder about what other
leaps of faith that management might be requesting.
What’s wrong with the “always right” belief in business?
Customer infallibility is founded on the noble assumption that when a customer is happy, everybody wins. The unfortunate reality is that this philosophy often invites customers to exploit this belief creating
“win-lose” scenarios. We succumb to unreasonable demands or even abuse of the people serving them. The customer may be King. But monarchical loyalty has its limitations. Sometimes the emperor is naked.
The King is Dead. Long Live the King.
If customer infallibility is a myth, then how do we engage our people’s commitment to serve them? How about:
If you love your customers, they’ll love you back.
But, isn’t this equally untrue? Perhaps not, if we can recognize the occasional need for
tough love. When and how might we dare to demonstrate
tough love with our customers? When our relationship has evolved into a
win for the customer and a consistent
loser for us, shouldn’t this situation be communicated and remedied? If a remedy can not be found, it’s sometimes more effective for
tough love to take the form of
strategic loss of sales.Who are your high-maintenance customers that repeatedly take more than they give? What if they became your competitor’s problem? If that happened, might you be better positioned to direct your limited resources toward those who do provide opportunities for mutual “win-win” relationships? Is it time for you to provide some tough love to your most exploiting customers?
Strategic Loss of Sales
Does some
strategic loss of sales make sense for you? With whom have you been
top-line wise and
bottom line foolish? What is preventing you from cutting the cord?
Before we take this too far…
While the act of buying shouldn’t elevate anyone to
Papal status, one critical fact remains.
If you don’t serve your customers with respect, empathy and even your love, they will seek someone else who will.
To replace the infallibility mindset and still effectively fight the battle for customer loyalty, I suggest two alternative axioms.
- While the customer is NOT always right, we will always make the customer feel important.
- The Right Customer is a Profitable Customer
Palatable precepts for practitioners of any denomination.Happy Valentine’s Day and as you serve your customers remember…
“All you need is love” – The Beatles
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Who’s ‘Always Right’?
If customer infallibility is a myth, then how do we engage our people’s commitment to serve them? How about:
