Do Your Staff Support - or Damage - Your Brand?
I just had an interesting - and frustrating - experience trying to buy some shirts on sale at the website of a high end clothier on Saturday. Interesting because it illustrated how companies that spend a lot of money and creative horsepower building a brand, don’t seem to spend money on hiring and training people who support their brand efforts.
I won’t bore you with the web frustrations. Just suffice it to say their ordering process was not exactly user-friendly, and the advertised discount didn’t register on the order, so my confirmation shows I paid full price, and that my gift cards weren’t counted, etc. etc. – not exactly the kind of customer experience that brings them back for more.
When I called customer service, and explained what happened, the CSR confirmed, yes, it hadn’t gone through correctly and that someone would call me back on Monday.
So much for the ease of buying online.
What was striking to me was the effort, money, and years this company has spent in creating a classy image and yet they don’t hire people who get it that if the customer is inconvenienced, basic courtesy says you respond with:
“I’m sorry for the inconvenience” and you say it with sincerity.
I would think that the majority of their customers are of the “old school” of proper etiquette and would be especially desiring of courtesy, so to have this kind of response was surprising.
When I got home on Monday and got their message to call back and did, I reached a different person, a man with a stern, not terribly inviting, voice. I told him I had received a message from Tara (not her real name) and was returning her call.
“Hold on one second” was his response.
No “Please…” or “Could you hold on…”
Just a direct order to hold on…
“What is it with these people!” I’m thinking. You would think that Brooks Brothers would be like the Ritz Carlton of retail and only hire people who have a high degree of class and manners.
Oh, and then, when I checked with “Tara” to see if the $10 discount they advertised had been applied – Nope!.
Again… no “Sorry for the inconvenience”, no indication that the whole process should have been an embarrassment to her and her employer. (there was even more to this, but I didn’t want to bog you down in all the details).
OK, enough of the rant… I share this with you to heighten your awareness of how your people might be representing you.
Are you hiring people with manners?
Are you coaching your CSRs?
Are you mystery shopping your business?
If not, you might be spending a lot of money building a brand, while your staff is damaging it.
E-mail this entry to a friend
AMEN!
David,
I was getting my vehicle inspected at a large Maine owned auto service chain the other day. After waiting two hours past the appointment time I had set, I was told my truck was ready; however, it could not be inspected. He explained very apologetically that there was an issue with my front brake discs that prevented inspection. He said that the issue was marginal and that there were other garages that might pass it, but there policy was to err on the side of safety; I certainly appreciated that!
Since I usually rely on the vigilance of my local constables rather than my memory for notification that my inspection was due, I explained to the clerk that the inspection was the most important part of my visit that day, and that the reason I was not currently inspected was that I was extremely busy; another visit would be a pain.
I finally asked exactly what the issue was. He put the truck back on the lift and showed me the problem. It was obvious that I'd need new discs, so I asked him why he was sending me to another garage, couldn't they do that work here?
He said they could, but it might be expensive. I asked how much? He said he would look it up...is there a pattern forming here?
Finally, he said he could do the work for $50 per wheel. It didn't take long to do the math: for less money than a fine for an un-inspected vehicle, I could have brand new brakes I wouldn't have to worry about for years. I still wasn't sure if the hassle factor was worth it! It might have been less aggravating to go to jail!
Finally I asked if this could be done right away. I'll give them them this, they were very polite! He said he'd be glad to do it right now!
I called a friend and went to lunch. When I got back, the service manger told me that my parts had been sent to the wrong garage, and were now on the way.
Five hours after the scheduled time for my appointment, I drove away happily with my new brakes and inspection sticker!
Now I truly felt like a VIP!
I am very understanding of the hassles of trying to meet customer demands, but as you point out so well, if front-line people are trained properly and have the power to make decisions in real-time, both the customer AND the staff will be much better off.
Take head of David's wise words! Train your people to make decisions and act in real time; give them the POWER to satisfy the customer!
Best thoughts!
Jim
Posted by
Jim BouchardDecember 5, 2007 11:12 AM
Subscribe