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Don't Let Your Systems Drive Your Customers Crazy
by Ron Kaufman
Customers are often left frustrated by a company's smooth-running
and standardized, but inflexible policies.
Does your company "run like clockwork?" Are your accountants
pleased with how smoothly everything moves along? Are your
managers content with how customers are managed throughout your
system?
If so, watch out! Your present methods may include policies and
procedures that are convenient for the company, but utterly
frustrating for your customers.
Customers discover these land-mines of dissatisfaction in your
company almost by accident. They usually stumble upon them in the
course of normal business. Dedicated customers will speak up and
complain. Others will just go away.
I am one customer who makes a point of letting companies know
when their polices are frustrating, preposterous or just plain
customer-unfriendly. Unfortunately, many organizations have built
up a thick layer of resistance and defensiveness towards such
comments. They have stopped listening to the voice of the
customer ... especially the customer with a complaint.
In recent weeks I have had a series of actual experiences bizarre
enough to make me wonder whether anyone is listening at all! I
think you'll find them both funny and disturbing.
"The Conference Rate" at Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles:
I was making arrangements to attend the American Society of
Training and Development Annual Conference in Los Angeles. As a
frequent flyer, I have many award coupons offering a 50 per cent
discount from usual hotel rates.
I called Hilton Hotels in California to make my reservations. The
reservations clerk was infinitely helpful. First, she took my
name, then my contact numbers. She confirmed the dates, my room
preference and credit card number.
She asked if I was a Hilton Honors Club member, which I was not.
She signed me up on the spot and then remarked: "Now that you are
a Hilton Honors Club member, I can offer you an even lower rate,
and an upgraded Towers room on a higher floor. A fruit basket
will be waiting for you upon arrival." I was delighted. And my
special discount rate was just US$85 per night.
In signing off, I said: "Thank you for your help. I am looking
forward to staying at the Hilton during the conference." "The
conference?", she shot back quickly. "What conference are you
attending?"
I replied that I was attending the American Society for Training
and Development's 50th Annual Conference at Disneyland. She said
quickly: "Mr Kaufman, if you are attending a conference during
your stay, you must use our special conference rate of US$112."
I laughed at her proposal and stated that I was happy with the
special rate she had already confirmed on my behalf. "Oh no," she
repeated. "If you are coming for a conference, you must use the
special conference rate. We have a block of rooms set aside for
conference participants on a lower floor. These rooms are
specially reserved for the people who are attending the
conference."
My protests were to no avail. She checked with her supervisor,
who concurred. "I'm sorry, but that's our policy," she said
without much concern.
I surrendered to her insistence, listened as she cancelled my
Hilton Honors Club reservation, declined to have her book me back
into the same hotel at the higher conference rate, and hung up
the phone in disbelief.
I called right back. I reached a different reservations clerk and
made another reservation. I used my frequent flyer award coupon
and the new Hilton Honors Club membership number I had received
in the previous phone call. This time I kept my mouth shut about
attending any conference!
I paid just US$85 when I went to Los Angeles. I enjoyed the
Hilton Towers room and enjoyed the complimentary fruit basket
upon arrival. No thanks to Hilton's absurd policy and customer
unfriendly procedures, though.
Somewhere deep inside the marketing department of Hilton Hotels,
yield management professionals have carefully calculated the
maximum rate they can, and will, charge participants at an
international conference.
Meanwhile conference participants are also thinkers,
communicators and frequent flyers... real-live customers! Hilton
Hotels, are you listening?
"Frequent Flyer Coupons" with Hertz Rent-A-Car in San Francisco.
My next step was to make a three-day car reservation for a
pre-conference visit to San Francisco. I called Hertz, where I am
a member of the "Hertz Number One Club" for frequent travelers.
I planned to use an award coupon for one free day rental from
American Airlines and additional award coupons for two more free
days from United Airlines.
The telephone reservation officer gave impeccable service. She
greeted me pleasantly, acknowledged me as a member of the Number
One Club, confirmed my dates, flights, pick-up location and my
choice of automobile.
Then she asked me what time I would be returning the car after
the first day of rental. "I want the car for all three days," I
replied. "You can't keep the same car for all three days," she
asserted. "After the first day you have to bring the car back and
pick up a different car for the next two days. The first day is
paid for with your American Airlines coupon, but the next two
days are with your United coupons."
I was skeptical. "But I am the same person, with the same Hertz
Number One Club member. I am the rightful owner of all the awards
coupons, and I want a Hertz automobile for three consecutive
days. Surely you will let me keep the same car, and avoid having
to come back to the airport in the middle of my Bay Area
vacation."
"That's not the way our system works here, Mr Kaufman," she
replied.
"But it should work that way, don't you agree?" I asked,
appealing to her sense of logic, concern and elementary customer
care.
"I don't make the rules here, Mr Kaufman. Just follow them. What
time will you be returning the car after the first day?"
Somewhere deep inside the heart of Hertz, a group of senior
accountants live comfortably with their precise policy of "one
airline, one coupon, one car, no exceptions". But somewhere
closer to this customer's heart lies, frustration, inconvenience,
and incredible disbelief.
But I'm not the type of customer who gives up in these
situations. When my Hertz reservation commenced in May, I took
along a copy of this article to San Francisco and had a long chat
with the most senior manager I could find at the airport. I ended
up keeping the same car for three days. Hertz Rent-A-Car was
listening.
"You Don't Get Juice" with a Broiler Meal at Burger King:
You don't have to call a reservations officer to experience
procedural insanity instead of convenience and customer care.
Before going vegetarian, I used to visit Burger King for their BK
Broiler meal, a fast food lunch of broiled chicken sandwich and
french fries.
But instead of taking the large Coca-Cola included in the
package, I always asked for a small glass of orange juice
instead. The counter staff would freeze up in uncertainty and
refer my request to the floor manager.
One young manager was particularly memorable. "I'm sorry, sir,"
he told me. "You can't have the orange juice with the BK Broiler
Meal."
"Oh, sure I can," I replied, "I do it all the time at the other
Burger Kings. I know there is a 65-cent price difference and I am
happy to pay the difference."
"That's not the problem," he said with a touch of annoyance.
"There's no key here on my computer to make the substitution, so
I can't let you do it."
"Hey, sometimes you just have to break the rules," I said,
reminding him of Burger King's own multi-million dollar
advertising campaign. "I'll take the BK Broiler meal, with orange
juice."
He realized I was not going to take "No" for an answer and he
could not very well go against Burger King's well-known
advertising promise. "I'll do it for you just this once, as an
exception," he said curtly.
"Oh c'mon, you can do it for me anytime," I replied.
"No," he stated, looking at me straight in the eye. "I will do it
for you this once, but I won't do it again the next time."
"Wait a minute," I asked gamely. "You are about to make me a
happy customer. Do you really mean you wouldn't make me a happy
customer again?"
"I will do it for you this once," he repeated flatly. When I
received my meal, with orange juice, I gave the manager a genuine
smile and said, "See you again next time."
He quietly replied, just below his breath but loud enough for me
to hear, "No, I don't want to see you again."
Somewhere deep inside Burger King, computer programmers design
point of purchase terminals to carefully limit the choices and
options of customers around the world.
Accountants are happy. The daily sales reports are neat and
accurate and clean. But at the counter of the restaurants, face
to face between customers and staff, both parties experience
frustration.
The advertising slogan says "Sometimes you've just got to break
the rules", but the restaurant manager cannot.
After this article first came out, Burger King called and invited
me to lunch. They asked me to tell my story. They asked me for
suggestions.
The following week I returned to the same outlet seeking a BK
Broiler Meal, with small orange juice. The counter staff smiled
brightly and keyed in my order.
"How did you do that!?" I asked in a state of pleased amazement.
"Oh, now it's easy," she replied. "Last week they gave us a new
key on the computer to make simple menu changes."
Congratulations, Burger King. You are listening!
Now each of these stories is completely true, but they are only
valuable if they inspire you to listen more closely to your
customers and more carefully examine your policies and
procedures.
And remember, although certain polices may cause customers to
fume in frustration, the rest of your system may quietly conspire
to keep the complaining customers' voice at bay.
Ask your customers:
"How can we serve you better? Is there anything that frustrates
you most about the way we provide our service? Is there anything
you would like us to do more of? less of? start doing? stop
doing? What do other companies do for you that we don't do here?"
Ask your staff:
"What do our customers ask for that frustrates you the most? Are
there any special customer requests that really drive you crazy?
Is there anything they ask for that is against our company
policy?
Is it the customer that makes your staff so mad, or are they
driven to distress by limitations in your systems, policies and
procedures?
Make special requests:
You can learn how to improve your own systems by testing the
flexibility of others. Whenever you dine, travel, shop, purchase
or rent, make requests that are slightly different from the usual
routine, ask for specials "not on the menu".
Watch carefully how each establishment responds to your requests.
Are they fast, flexible and friendly? What is it about their
policy and systems that allows them to respond?
Finally, ask yourself: Are you willing to make the change? Your
accountant is comfortable. Your managers are content. But who are
you in business for?
Your accounting department will still be with you tomorrow. Will
your customers be with you, too?
Copyright, Ron Kaufman.
Ron Kaufman is an internationally acclaimed innovator and motivator for
partnerships and quality service. For a FREE Newsletter, visit:
http://www.RonKaufman.com
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Mr. Ron Kaufman
Speaker/Author
Customer Service Expert
Singapore
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