In the wake of the United passenger dragging incident, and that of a first class full fare passenger being told to vacate a plane or be handcuffed, eventually to be allowed to sit in economy, attention to bad customer service highlights what all of us at Aurora have been saying for years.
A company is as good as its ability to deal with problems, not its ability to deliver a service when everything works.
Any fool can sit by while things go right. The value is shown with how issues are handled when things go wrong.
 
And with an estimated 95% of people sharing bad experiences, can you really afford that?
 
If an inconvenienced customer is made happier than one who hadn't had the inconvenience at all, surely that is a reward in its own right, and perhaps everyone would want to be inconvenienced!
And when relaying their experience, especially in the world of social media viral communication, how well do you think this message will be spread through word of mouth, the most powerful marketing on the planet?
 
 
Of course the inconvenience may have a cost, but a happy, loyal and vocal customer is priceless.
 
Sure, the processes must be designed to work right in the first place, and to avoid obvious and common problems where possible, seamlessly, and ideally without any client awareness if possible, but the process needs to be designed so that any exceptions from the rule(s) are flagged for attention, and where any customer inconvenience is swiftly and unquestionably replaced with an experience that makes the customer glad to have had the 'negative' experience.
 
Words like empowerment are often overused, and underdone, but it's not about making staff have to jump through hoops "above their pay grade" either. Compensation can take place in a variety of forms, and understanding what ways to compensate a customer so they feel valued is quite simply the first stepping stone of the strive towards perfect customer care.
 
 
Designing a service is all about understanding the needs and wants of the stakeholders in the process, establishing the essentials, and identifying what can go wrong.
 
Murphy's Law (If something can go wrong, it will go wrong, and at the worst possible time) should be a stark reminder to us all to prepare for the worst, and be very happy when that doesn't happen. But when it does, to be so ready for it, that you're almost grateful for the opportunity.
 
Designing perfect customer care is one of our goals at Aurora. Any business large or small has obligations. All companies provide something, even just peace of mind, and each requires something in order to provide their products or services to their customers. By evaluating what can go wrong, we can integrate identify how and where 'things can go wrong', and introduce measures to deal with them. Often using automated steps for the common issues, and adding bespoke ones as and when deemed cost effective versus the associated risk value.
 
Often, the biggest obstacle is perceived to be cost. Yet why spend a fortune preparing for every eventuality, when you can simply have a rewarding exception handling process for when deviations occur, that if designed right can work out more cost effective than preparing for every possible loophole, especially if the customer sings you praises for how you handle the exceptions.
 
And isn't being prepared, and eliminating the risk to reputation or revenue, an essential insurance policy for your business?
 
If you want to design the perfect customer care solution, contact us, so we can discuss how to make your company, department, product or service delivery smoother, and more rewarding all round.
1