{"id":7019,"date":"2024-09-03T09:07:05","date_gmt":"2024-09-02T21:07:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jamesandwells.com\/?p=7019"},"modified":"2024-09-03T09:07:05","modified_gmt":"2024-09-02T21:07:05","slug":"sorry-for-the-inconvenience-are-you-really","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jamesandwells.com\/nz\/sorry-for-the-inconvenience-are-you-really\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cSorry for the inconvenience.\u201d Are you? Really?"},"content":{"rendered":"

First published in Bay of Plenty Business News September 2024 edition<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Customer satisfaction is worthless. Customer loyalty is priceless.” <\/em>(Jeffrey Gitomer)1<\/sup><\/p>\n

The current economic climate is not an excuse for poor customer service \u2013 especially when brand loyalty is being ditched for cheaper alternatives.2<\/sup><\/p>\n

Nor is technology an excuse for poor customer service \u2013 especially when the sole purpose of that technology is to acquire customers.<\/p>\n

Now, I understand that the current economic climate is incredibly stressful for many businesses,3<\/sup> and that technology can be far from perfect \u2013 but, despite these challenges, if you want to keep your customers and get new customers, then your customer service must<\/em> be at the top of its game. There is simply no alternative \u2013 customers at present are just too valuable.<\/p>\n

Hang on\u2026I thought this was supposed to be a column on intellectual property? What\u2019s customer service got to do with IP? Well, it just so happens, quite a lot\u2026<\/p>\n

Intellectual property is not just about individual assets like trade marks, patents and plant variety rights. More broadly, it\u2019s also about brand \u2013 in particular, brand reputation and goodwill. And one of the key drivers of brand reputation and goodwill is customer service.4<\/sup><\/p>\n

There surely wouldn\u2019t be a marketer in the country who would disagree that you can have the best product or service in the world but if your customer service is less than satisfactory, your chances of repeat sales and referral acquisitions will be significantly impacted. As noted by Michael Summers-Gervai, a director of EY, in a piece entitled \u201cBuilding loyalty for longevity\u201d, one strategy brands can employ to retain existing clients is to focus on customer experience5<\/sup>:<\/p>\n

P<\/em>eople no longer head to the shops simply to purchase products. They go for the experience \u2013 and that explains why 61% of customers will switch to a competitor6<\/sup>\u00a0after just one bad experience. <\/em>In fact, one survey found 60% customers7<\/sup>\u00a0would prefer to sit in a traffic jam than face a poor customer experience. If customer experience is everything, then even bad experiences can be turned around. We know customers are 2.4 times more likely to remain loyal8<\/sup>\u00a0to a brand if problems are solved quickly. The smart response for brands and retailers is to keep a very close eye on key customer experience metrics, and course correct with speed and purpose.<\/em><\/em><\/div>\n

Which brings me to the title of this article: \u201cSorry for the inconvenience.\u201d If you have cause to utter these words to a customer, then I really hope for the sake of your brand\u2019s reputation and goodwill that you mean them \u2013 and, more importantly, your customer understands that you mean them. I myself have heard these words, or words to this effect, a few times of late and I can honestly say I doubted their conveyers\u2019 sincerity. I have yet to decide whether I will add to Mr Summers-Gervai\u2019s 61%.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Jeffrey Gitomer\u00a0is an American salesperson, author, and speaker who writes and lectures on sales,\u00a0customer loyalty, and\u00a0personal development.<\/li>\n
  2. https:\/\/www.theaustralian.com.au\/business\/growth-agenda\/consumer-brand-loyalty-declines-in-hard-times-research-finds\/news-story\/284ba9fa3b2584c9a3c53888b1a871e4<\/a>. Accessed 19 August 2024.<\/li>\n
  3. Noting that although readers may not hear about it, the legal profession is also not immune to the effects of economic downturns.<\/li>\n
  4. For an example of discussion on this topic, see https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/pulse\/brand-reputation-customer-experience-bytescare-ofsof\/<\/a>. Accessed 19 August 2024.<\/li>\n
  5. https:\/\/www.ey.com\/en_nz\/future-consumer-index\/are-recessions-the-best-times-to-redefine-brand-loyalty<\/a>. Accessed 16 August 2024.<\/li>\n
  6. Above, citing cx-trends-report-2022.zendesk.com\/opportunity.<\/li>\n
  7. Above at n 5, citing www.businesswire.com\/news\/home\/20220418005087\/en\/Nearly-60-of-Consumers-Would-Prefer-Being-Stuck-in-a-Traffic-Jam-Over-Having-a-Bad-Customer-Experience<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  8. Above at n 5, citing www.forrester.com\/blogs\/whats-the-roi-of-cx-transformation\/<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    First published in Bay of Plenty Business News September 2024 edition “Customer satisfaction is worthless. Customer loyalty is priceless.” (Jeffrey Gitomer)1 The current economic climate is not an excuse for poor customer service \u2013 especially when brand loyalty is being ditched for cheaper alternatives.2 Nor is technology an excuse for poor customer service \u2013 especially…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":7026,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[78],"class_list":["post-7019","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-trade-marks","insight-resource-articles"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n\u201cSorry for the inconvenience.\u201d Are you? 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