Most of us are involved in some form of business acquisition for our respective companies. We all know that winning business often requires a significant investment in time, resources and energy, and that the thrill of the chase is an exciting one.
It is a shame that, having worked so hard to win the business in the first place, we then become complacent and allow our enthusiasm to diminish -- while the customer  's enthusiasm appears to increase.
Unfortunately, customer care is still regarded by many as a costly activity or a burden on resources. Some organizations have already recognized the importance of customer care, and a few are very advanced in its practice -- but it is only a few.
If your company seems to be determined to lose its customers, here are 10 tips that will most certainly help the process along.
1. Pass the customer around. Whatever you do, make it virtually impossible for the customer to get what they want when they call you. Make them work by asking them to repeat themselves. Then, to add that bit extra, get someone who does not know how to transfer a call to accidentally cut off the customer.
2. Buy a system, and then fit your strategy around it. Find a complicated system that your own people cannot understand or utilize, so there's no possible way they can work with it to improve customer relations.
3. Rely on technology. Forget the people and buy the best automated technology, then put it in front of your customer service operation. It's best to make it really difficult for the customer so that they get confused, and when they do not make a choice, route them to a really poor-quality answering machine.
4. Forget about training; just do what so many companies do today and put staff on the telephone without an iota of training. Better still, make sure they can't be easily understood and are good at arguing with customers.
5. Do not reward loyalty. Forget about all those loyal customers who have been with you for years. Instead, go out of your way to attract new customers with better deals, and tell your existing ones they cannot have the same special offer, despite how long they have been with your company and how much they have spent.
6. Ignore the millions of people with speech or hearing difficulties. If you operate predominantly in the consumer sector, then ignore all those who may not be able to communicate effectively with you. After all, who wants another million or so potential customers? (continued...)
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Social Media and the Customer Experience