Why is it that we always tend to shift blame on factors outside of our control? It’s so easy to blame the other guy or, in this instance, the COVID pandemic.
Church designers, let me set the stage from my personal experience. This past fall, Westjet, Canada’s second largest airline, was accepting reservations for flights to and from Mexico—knowing full well that these would likely be cancelled. They were. I know this because every one off my flights last winter were cancelled, and guess what? They have not refunded the money. Instead, I had to go through a number of hurdles, many of which were impossible to do while in Mexico, since you have to phone a 1-800 number that is not accessible outside of Canada or the USA.
After these flights were cancelled, I went online to book a flight on Aeromexico, and I compared the price to using Flight Network—an online travel agency. I discovered that the price for the ticket was less than half. So I bought my tickets through them. A few weeks later, Flight Network advised that my flight was cancelled and that due to COVID, refunds would be slower than usual. I also got an email from Aeromexico saying the flight was cancelled and unless I booked directly with them, I would have to go back to the agent to get a refund. What a mess.
What’s really going on?
It appears that some businesses are taking advantage of the COVID epidemic to bolster their revenues by knowingly making promises they cannot keep, all the while reducing operating costs and then pointing the finger outward. I get it. The airline and tourist industries have been decimated by the pandemic, and companies are doing what they can to stay afloat. Smart on one hand, but not on the other.
Oftentimes, you will never even know that you have lost a customer unless you have a very solid relationship.
It is well documented that the cost to retain a customer is much lower than the cost to acquire a new one. Oftentimes, you will never even know that you have lost a customer unless you have a very solid relationship. Building relationships take time. Visiting a customer costs money: flights, car rental, accommodations, meals, entertainment, and opportunity-time away from the office all add up. First calls are often short, and unless you find some mutual ground with a buyer or a need to work together because you have something that he or she needs, getting a second appointment is often difficult. Yet, once the relationship is established, things become easier. You can make a phone call, leave a message, and get a call back. Dropping the customer by not holding up your end of the bargain is the biggest offense you can commit. American Express did a survey whereby they discovered that 78% of customers have bailed on an intended transaction because of a poor online experience.
Losing a customer in this age of social media has immediate implications: Nearly half of all customers who had a negative experience told others.
What’s more, AMEX found in its survey that customers who have had a negative service experience don’t keep it to themselves. Losing a customer in this age of social media has immediate implications: Nearly half of all customers who had a negative experience told others. Customers leave because their experience with a product or service failed to live up to their expectations. Classic examples: an item broke, a guarantee wasn’t met, the vender referred the repair to an outside party, the product info was inaccurate, calls weren’t returned, a complaint was ignored and, most distressing, the services was too slow. That "2-star Google review" stems doubt—which means that instead of your company being top-of-the-pile you are shifted aside into the questionable column.
Now, if you zoom out for a minute, what does this mean? Does this open any opportunities? Well, it very well may. Of course, no one likes change. It is so much easier to call someone you know to get things fixed. But when companies forget about customer service, this pushes open a crack in the door. Which is why now may be a good time to reach out to potential customers that have ignored you in the past due to their established relationships. If their regular suppliers are using COVID as an excuse for slow service, this could be a golden opportunity to say, "We are not making excuses … we have your back—no matter what." And mean it.
Building relationships takes time. Yet, once a relationship is established, things get easier.
Smart business tactics never get old
Farming keeps your current crop of customers alive, while being on the hunt opens opportunity for new business. You need both. Entrepreneurs love the rush of literally and figuratively knocking on doors, and then the exhilaration of breaking into a new opportunity. But while we do so, we cannot forget the importance of cash flow, the lifeblood of all organizations. Remember that taking care of current customers is significantly less expensive and more profitable than prospecting. And this means allocating resources. The last thing you want to do is to forget the people that put you where you are in the first place.
Remember that taking care of current customers is significantly less expensive and more profitable than prospecting ... The last thing you want to do is to forget the people that put you where you are in the first place.
I know that, going forward, I will do whatever I can to avoid buying a ticket from Westjet, even though Air Canada is likely pulling off the same silly games. And I will definitely stop using Flight Network for bookings and shift my loyalty to another travel agency.
In the end, I am like everyone else … I expect good customer service in exchange for my hard-earned dollars. Using the pandemic as an excuse for terrible customer service is bad for those that want my business.
