In our roles as consumers, we have expectations of the companies and people with whom we do business. We expect them to treat us fairly, live up to their promises, and stand behind their products if there are problems. Since the customer is always right, we expect to be given the benefit of the doubt if there are any grey areas. Once the matter is settled, we expect to be satisfied to the point where we have enough confidence to continue doing business with those companies in future.
In business-to-business roles we have the same expectations when we are the customer. Of course, that means our customers have the same expectations of us.
An entrepreneur I worked with had a simple customer complaint policy: act now – think later. His employees were expected to treat complaints with sincerity and a sense of urgency. Whatever the problem or whoever may be at fault, even if it is the customer, apologize and do whatever is needed to solve the problem and satisfy the customer. Figure out later what went wrong or who may be at fault. His company’s reputation for exceptional customer service increased its profitability even after allowing for the occasional customer who took advantage of the act now – think later policy. (Such customers might be removed from the company’s customer list.)
The act now phase is focused wholly on the customer. Resolve the complaint and satisfy the customer. Act now does not mean act without thinking. It is a state of mind where thinking is focused on resolving the problem rather than looking for what went wrong or who is to blame.
The think later phase is the review process, an opportunity to explore thoroughly the root cause of the complaint in a calm, unhurried manner. Lessons are learned and appropriate remedial action is taken.
An act now – think later policy can be applied beyond customer complaints. Delivery delays, equipment breakdowns and shipping errors are examples of where employees should be trained to focus fully on what needs to be done immediately to resolve the problem and satisfy the customer and not be distracted by the who and the why.
