What wins customers back after a customer experience failure?


Through a special arrangement, presented here for discussion is a summary of a current article from MarketingCharts, a Watershed Publishing publication providing up-to-the-minute data and research to marketers.
According to a global survey from cloud-based content software provider SDL, consumers most often ascribe their "worst" customer experience (CX) failures to the post-sale support of the customer journey stage. Long waits/poor response times (35 percent), "unempowered" employees (31 percent) and poorly trained employees (30 percent) were the most commonly cited reasons for CX failures. So can customers be re-engaged?
Apparently, the desire is there, as 82 percent of customers experiencing a "worst CX" said they are interested in fixing the problem. But the survey also finds that only about one in five customers experiencing a "worst CX" event will consider doing business with the company again.
The study finds that customers who had returned to a company post-failure were most likely to attribute that to:
- The company owning the failure and admitting its mistakes (29 percent share);
- Receiving a genuine, personalized apology (22 percent); and
- The company giving discounts, credits, rebates on products/services where the failure was experienced (21 percent).
The survey also found disparities between what customers said they wanted to fix and what actually worked. Some 30 percent of returning customers said they want to see their experience help the brand to change; only eight percent admit that this actually worked. Also, 19 percent of returning customers said they want compensation for future purchases; only nine percent admit that this actually worked.
Interestingly, Millennials are much less willing to resolve a failure than Boomers. Twenty-seven percent of Millennials said they were not interested compared to just 13 percent of Boomers.
The survey of 2,784 consumers across nine countries was conducted from January through March, 2015.
- What Wins Customers Back After A CX Failure? – MarketingCharts
- New Global Research from SDL Reveals Insights into Customer Experience Failures from the Past Decade (press release) – SDL
- Voice of the Customer: It’s Time for a Global Customer Experience Wakeup Call (study) – SDL
What are your recommendations for winning back customers after a customer service failure? What common reparation responses do you think often fall short or go too far?
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16 Comments on "What wins customers back after a customer experience failure?"
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Some sort of price allowance on a future purchase (if not a refund on the “problem” purchase, if the goods aren’t returned) is a tangible acknowledgement of fault, as well as an incentive to try the store or service provider again. Simply apologizing or issuing a “mea culpa” message isn’t enough.
Companies’ willingness to take this step seems to be in direct proportion to their market power. Don’t expect much compensation from a company holding a market monopoly, such as a utility or cable provider! But most retailers are fighting for market share, and need to behave accordingly when they mess up the customer experience.
Own up to the failure. Apologize. Ask how to make things right. Make things right. It’s not that hard, yet many retailers have trouble doing this, resulting in lost customers and negative word of mouth.
Today’s retailers can ill-afford losing customers to poor customer service (there are far too many options available that could quickly grab your disillusioned shopper and it will cost five to seven times more to replace her!)
My advice is simple: respond responsibly. Owning up to the issue and not only making it right, but also offering a discount reward or some other valued customer gift is appropriate.
Mistakes are not bad — they are an ideal opportunity to learn, grow and provide even better service in the future.
Showing genuine concern for the consumer is a great start. I find that to be far too rare of an occurrence in my personal experience. Also, looking at company policy and addressing what the consumer wants and seeing if it truly hurts the organization to give them what they want. Just make them happy if they are reasonable.
First and foremost is to make sure that everyone in the organization understands that the purpose of dealing with a bad customer experience is not just to solve the immediate problem but to make sure you solve the problem in a way so that the customer will come back.
This starts with setting clear expectations, training and empowerment of employees to not only solve the current problem but to do what it takes to make sure the customer returns.
The goal is not just to fix the problem. The goal is to regain the customer’s confidence. We teach a simple five step process to deal with any customer complaints or issues:
For the businesses that like to give things away for free, many times that is just a band aid. The goal is to get the customer back in the door. The credit toward a future visit helps.
While first impressions are the foundation of success, you never get a second chance to make a second impression.
Winning back customers is a chance to recreate a brand impression all over again, only it’s harder the second time around. Once trust is violated in the eyes of the beholder, the next customer experience must be all about personalizing the experience and addressing what the consumer deems most important.
There are five keys. An interaction must be:
The most challenging aspect of winning back customers is that it typically involves people, not “reparations.” That requires quality staff who are genuinely interested in customers.
Acknowledgement of a service failure is the starting point, but just saying “We’re sorry” is not enough. Brands need to punctuate their admission with some form of tangible reward or recognition to let the customer know that it really matters to them.
There is a certain customer “ennui” with big business that fuels the belief that customer service never really improves, it just limps along at a mediocre pace. For that reason, I believe that a consistent approach to improving customer service is needed if brand image is to improve.
Interesting and timely post. Last evening my wife and I had a “worst” or close to it at a chain restaurant that we have frequented before. The meal was uneatable. Simple enough, we had cheeseburgers and a side. My side was not even tolerable—so bad I did not want it on the plate. The cheeseburgers were overcooked on what looked and tasted like yesterday’s bread.
We ate what we could. The waiter could tell we were dissatisfied. He sent the manager to us. She made us feel heard and important. She did all of the above in taking ownership, apologizing and “eating” the check. Had she taken another attitude the chances are we would never return; and by now, would have told many of our friends. She turned a bad experience in to one where our voices and concerns were heard. She understood what a customer experience is supposed to be.
My experience with brick and mortar retailers is pretty good. When I look someone in the eye and tell them something, we can usually come to an agreement. At large, cyber-based retailers, there is no equivalent to a store manager.
The store manager wants to keep you as a customer. Good luck finding a person like that at a cyber retailer, the cable company, your credit card company, or a health insurance company. Retaining you as a customer isn’t any more important to them than retaining you as a driver is to the DMV.
Customer service failures require humility, acknowledgement and genuine efforts to reconcile the issue.
Most often, responses fall short due to poorly trained employees who are absent any sense of empowerment to address and resolve service failures in real time. This drives consumers crazy, and drives them away, often for good.
The long-term, lifetime value consequences to losing a customer can be staggering, when all it takes is an authentic gesture to connect with the customer in the moment and address the issue in a manner they desire.
Own up to the mistake, apologise and ask how to make things right. Reputation is everything, and a customer service failure handled the right way can bring a ton of positives from it. It shows the company cares about its customers.