I have been told stories like the above in customer service workshops I have been running for years and, in almost 100% of cases, when the customer finds out that they have been ripped off in the past, rather than accepting the price match from their existing provider, they take their business to the competitor even if it inconveniences them to do it. Why? Because the ego drive is stronger than the money drive! When I am humiliated by a car dealer or a financial planner or a phone company or an energy provider, no discount is enough to make me loyal again AND I WANT REVENGE. For some people taking their business elsewhere is not enough revenge, these people will tell their friends (and sometimes anyone who will listen) how they have been treated and go on social media to tell (usually embellished) stories of how badly they were treated. And in some cases the revenge does more damage to the original business than the money they made by ripping off the customer. I had a lady in a workshop tell me very passionately (and she said she had told the story HUNDREDS of times before) how she changed the venue for her $80,000 wedding reception when one of her friends told her they had a function there and were overcharged $500. Why does this go on happening? All companies try to maximise their revenue but not all companies consider the repercussions of the ways they get more sales. By offering better deals to new customers than to existing customers and rewarding disloyalty rather than loyalty, companies must surely know that, eventually, they will have more and more disloyal customers who will leave them when a competitor offers a better deal. And by gouging their existing customers they know they will do their brand great damage IF THEIR CUSTOMERS FIND OUT. Consider an alternative universe and one I am trying to create with my teachings.
My financial planner says to me. “You have been a client for many years now and we appreciate that. We think you should have your estate planning organised. We’d like you to meet with our preferred legal people and we’ll pick up the tab for the creation of your wills.” My car dealer says to my son “This may or may not be a serious problem but your dad has bought lots of cars from us so we’ll get you back on the road at our own expense and we don’t care how much it will cost us to do that.” Here’s what would happen. I’d still be with my original financial planner paying his ridiculous fees and being overinsured and telling people what a great bloke he was for organising my wills free of charge. Depending on how long I live he could have made another couple of hundred thousand dollars from me. I’d still be buying and servicing my cars at my dealer and depending on how long I live he could have made another couple of hundred thousand dollars from me. I think most companies believe that the extra revenue they make from discriminating against their loyal non-complaining customers is greater than the cost of rewarding them for their loyalty. And by rewarding them for their loyalty, I don’t mean offering their existing customers promotional prices on a permanent basis, I mean just doing nice things for them once in a while and seeing them as a source of future revenue for a long time rather than a cash cow they can exploit today. I beg to differ. Martin Grunstein’s outstanding results with over 500 Australasian companies across over 100 industries has made him this country’s most in-demand speaker on customer service. He is contactable on 0414933249 or through his website www.martingrunstein.com.au
February 2018 www.australianhotels.asn.au
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