[New Post] Revenge and Reward: Is Your Customer Service Team Likeable?

[Garrett Sussman]

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Revenge and Reward:
Is Your Customer Service Team Likeable?​

What do customers think about you?

When they think of your customer service what comes to mind? If you?re like most businesses you?re not entirely sure. Some feel the question doesn?t matter.

Who cares?

As long as customers are spending and satisfied what does that matter? That question is important for two reasons.

Revenge and reward.


Are your customers out for revenge?

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Research from Allison Johnson et al. found that a bad experience with a favorite brand is just as likely to cause revenge seeking behavior as an emotional breakup.

Yikes.

It?s frightening and a little bizarre. Why would customers feel the need to seek revenge against you for a bad experience? That seems like a disproportionate response to a seemingly minor problem, doesn?t it?

Believe it or not, revenge is a logical response?

According to the study, loyal customers identify so strongly with brands that they become part of their identity and self-concept. When your customers have a bad experience they?re far more likely to feel betrayed by your brands.

That perceived sense of betrayal is the motivating factor behind revenge seeking behavior.

That sounds ridiculous.

Because customers don?t care about brands! They?re focused on what you can do for them, right?

Actually, No.


Loyal customers care about brands

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As we?ve seen, brands become part of a customer?s identity, creating an intense connection that comes with its own expectations and requirements.

Here?s why that?s a problem.

If you?re like most companies, you work incredibly hard to win a customer. You work even harder to keep that customer. You focus your attention on maintaining customer loyalty.

Which is where things go wrong.

Almost every company wants a loyal customer. The kind of customer who?s willing to spend a huge amount of money on your products and services.

Customers like these:

[video=youtube;bWcE7MjzAXs]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWcE7MjzAXs[/video]

Or this:



Or this:

[video=youtube;tRc6lEL_3Oo]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRc6lEL_3Oo[/video]

Basically, the kind of customer we?d love to have.
And there lies the problem.

Read the rest of Andrew's post here. He goes on to explain some core thoughts on loyalty with regards to customer service.