Importance of building trust relationships

Mr. Company how can I trust you when you lie to me?

I recently had a scheduled appointment with a representative from one of my service providers. Further – it was an initial assessment and I hadn’t even handed over any money yet. After waiting for 20 mins (too long) in the waiting area I decided to call him and find out where he was. I was presented with a ridiculous lie. Details unimportant but if only he had told the truth and said “I got caught up” or “I’m so sorry I completely forgot how can I make this up to”.

This silly lie cost him and his company my trust and my business.

Having recently read the SAS Institute Inc’s ‘2009 Customer Experience Maturity Monitor’, this got me thinking about the importance of building trust relationships with customers. The SAS Institute Inc. sum up this concept nicely and say that “a customer’s trust is a belief that the company has her and his best interests at heart and can be depended upon for respect, openness, tolerance and honesty”.

What a fabulous philosophy for companies to use?

This article also describes the gap between how companies think they behave towards trust and how they actually behave. --- I think a key problem in developing customer centricity.

We are all human and we can all make mistakes but this can be overcome with a simple philosophy of respect, openness, tolerance and honesty.

It really matters how you respond to customer feedback

I use the term “customer feedback” which to me sometimes means “compliments” but most of the time this means “complaints”.

As a customer I often give feedback as I believe this is part of my role to play in having my expectations met. And I try to do it in a collaborative way. So this morning I gave some “customer feedback” to a well known local butcher where I often buy meat and also to a beauty spa where I recently had a treatment. Without providing you with the long winded tales here are some basic principles that I learned:

1. Provide customers with easy to use channels to provide feedback. Customers have different preferences so offer options such as a phone number, email address, website etc. I like to have a number to call.
2. Be open to feedback. I mean encourage customers to really tell you how they are feeling.
3. i.e. Don’t be defensive. Some customers will be offensive, don’t retaliate with defense.
4. Avoid denial. Customers don’t want to be told that they are telling fibs. If you don’t believe them rather say that you will investigate the problem. And then investigate it.
5. Don’t blame an employee or a broken system. It is your company, take ownership.
6. Thank customers for providing feedback. And really mean it.
7. Follow up with some information on how the problem was resolved.
   

Then lastly I personally DON’T like to be offered freebies when I give feedback. In my opinion freebies don’t buy good will and encourage the wrong kind of feedback, showing you care will keep me coming back… but this point is up for debate?

So….. I’m really looking forward to my massage next week but can anyone recommend a good butcher?