“The customer is always right” is an understatement in 2018.
Snapchat’s stock lost $1.3 billion when Kylie Jenner tweeted her disdain of the app’s new redesign.
A restaurant can close their doors forever after a negative Yelp comment.
And after reading a few unsavory guest reviews on Airbnb, I’m on to the next house, even if it’s at a greater cost.
According to Walker’s “Customers 2020: A Progress Report,” “Customer experience will overtake price and product as the key brand differentiator by the year 2020.”
My most recent customer experience happened at the mall. (Who says brick-and-mortar retail is dead?) I was in Nordstrom hoping someone could adjust my recently purchased, but ever so crooked Ray-Ban sunglasses. Unfortunately, they didn’t have the proper equipment, solution, or friendly employee to fix my problem. Slightly defeated (and a bit taken aback by the brashness of the salesperson), I perused the shopping center looking for help.
I spotted LensCrafters and hesitantly walked in, expecting a “service for customers only” sign to greet me. To my delight, Linda, the helpful sales associate on duty, was more than happy to not only straighten my shades, but also suggest she tighten the prescription glasses I was wearing. She took her time, she asked me questions about the fit, and we bonded over the amount of makeup hiding between my lenses (not a proud moment, actually). As she handed me back my glasses, I inquired on price. “No charge,” she said.
Amazing customer service in a business I had no purchasing affiliation with, plus two pairs of practically new glasses, all for free.
“But,” she continued, “if your lenses break, here’s my card. If you go through the dealer, it’ll cost you $200. If you go through Luxottica, you’ll pay $35.”
Add on “a reason to come back” to the earlier equation. And a quick trip to my social media accounts to share the pleasant experience.
Of course, Linda had plenty of buying customers that day to keep her shop afloat – we can’t give everything away for free. But what services can we offer at no cost, with a smile on our face that will leave them coming back for more with $$$ and a rave review? And how can we ensure that our paying customers leave our shop with that same warm and fuzzy feeling?
PSPs may spend their days outputting wide-format graphics, but our industry is fueled by people as much as by print. Happy, loyal customers with stellar customer experiences are more valuable than even the most glowing Yelp review. Be the customer service experience you wish to see in the world.
Check out more Insight from Editor-in-Chief Adrienne Palmer.