by Chris Echevarria
Over the past few weeks almost everyone I’ve spoken to has made mention about the horrible customer experience example involving a cable company and a dissatisfied customer wishing to discontinue his service. While there are many folks who have had similar experiences with this particular company, myself included, there’s a new weapon in the consumer tool box of complaint tools called social media. As the story goes, the individual who wished to disconnect his service was aware that the going might get rough as his wife had already spent time with this company trying to accomplish the same results, but he took it one step further and taped the conversation so that there would be no confusion in how the conversation really went. The ability to take this gathered information and post it out to social media has brought to light the aggressive tactics taken by some companies who possibly only pay lip service to the idea of an excellent “Customer Experience”.
Social media has in part helped Customers, whether consumers or B2B, tell the world about their Experience and not just the Service that they’ve received. The “service” or “product” will usually be described and rated, such as “the steak was a perfect medium-rare and the presentation with the fingerling potatoes and wine sauce was almost too perfect to eat”. Folks may take a picture of their food, posting it on Instagram and then go about eating the delicious meal. But what if the waiter barely addressed the guests, forgot to bring the bread, never checked on the dining party to see if the quality was to their liking and if they needed anything else? How good was that “experience”? Those same folks, who may have been impressed with the presentation of the steak on the plate, may turn around within the next half hour and let their followers know that while the steak was tasty enough, it was not worth the money as the experience lacked . . . . .(you fill in the blank). I know all of us have experienced these types of interactions but now with the social media channels at our immediate disposal on our smartphones, we have the ability to share our joys as well as our frustrations with our experiences immediately.
Companies, whether they are active or passive participants in the social media revolution, have to pay attention to what is being said about them but particularly the Experience their customers and prospects walk away with at the end of the engagement. Because if they don’t, the chance to improve, address an issue or pacify an irate customer may escalate into a public relations nightmare that could cost more than a few dollars but most likely cost future potential sales. On the flip side, the same can be said for the outstanding Customer Experience which, when advocated through social media, brings new customers and solidifies the loyalty of existing ones. Luckily, we all have a few of those stories as well!
Chris Echevarria is a veteran of the offset analog world who has made her way into the digital space. From marketing segment manager, competitive market analyst, product manager and currently as Canon Solutions America’s customer experience manager in Boca Raton, Chris enjoys participating in the changing landscape of the printing industry.
