Keeping Disgruntled Customers From Taking Down Your Brand

Global B2B buy sell marketplace: http://www.bytrade.com

 

By Walter Dailey

As a small business owner, I don’t want you to live in fear of what some overzealous complainer can do to your brand; that’s not the point of this article. I do, however, want you to be able to readily recognize service related issues and solve them fast. Being agile in this area is the surest way to mitigate the development of disaster.

Consider the following:

Get Ready To Be Tested
Whether it is a claim of guaranteed satisfaction, price-matching or friendly service, you must be fully ready to stand by what is stated in your communications. Know in advance that certain customers will test the limits of your assertions. Sure, there may be some inherently high-maintenance folks out there. However, there are also those that simply seek to validate your trustworthiness. In either case, see this challenge as a definitive way to boost the credibility of your brand.

Break The Rules
I recently was told about a retailer that was willing to take back a product that was all but used up by the customer. With good cause, most businesses would turn that individual away – citing a breach in return policy. However, the manager in this particular instance realized that a major concession like this would only serve to win this customer over.  In the short-run, this transaction registered as a loss. However, in the grand scheme of things, this customer was destined to be a lifelong patron due to the fact that their complaint trumped “factory policy” – what a way to smooth things over.

Just Another Face?
I once threatened to leave my cable provider over a major hike in rates and poor service. After an extended spiel on why I was dissatisfied, the customer service rep, in essence, told me to hit the bricks! This reckless behavior is often fostered by a company’s belief that they’re the best thing in town and that they’ll never have any problem finding replacement customers. This, of course, is completely wrong; do not fall prey to this mindset. Discounting one individual while looking to capture several others will only serve to dismantle the viability of your brand.