Counselor Magazine July 2012 : Page 46Case Studies / Management Act Fast Speed is vital when trying to turn angry clients around. Listen to their complaints, find out what they’re looking for to solve the problem, and act quickly to make things right. Case Study Distributor Redirects Auto Client Rebecca Thyre now considers one of her auto dealer clients a loyal and valuable customer. It wasn’t always like that, though. Thyre, vice president of distributor firm Top Impressions, had worked with a local auto dealership on three promotions when she received the type of call no company wants to get. On the other end of the phone was her contact at the dealership, and he said that the keytags he’d just ordered came in the wrong color and customers were complaining that the imprint was rubbing off quickly. “They ordered the items in navy blue, but they arrived as a much lighter shade of blue,” Thyre says. “I was horrified. I had even seen a color proof from the supplier and it was correct, so I wasn’t sure what happened.” Thyre immediately left her office to visit her client in person. She saw firsthand the keytags in the wrong color with the imprint rubbing off nearly as soon as they came out of the box. The order was part of a larger promotion that the car dealership was running with new customers, in which they would receive a welcome kit from the dealer. This was a key element, and the head of the dealership didn’t want to give out the kits until everything in it was perfect. “I called the supplier from the auto dealer’s parking lot right after the meeting,” Thyre says. “The supplier found the order, acknowledged the mistake and began running a new order on the machines immediately. I said I needed the new keytags as quickly as possible, and they understood the urgency of the situation.” The new keytags – in the correct color – were imprinted that same day and sent out for next-day delivery before the end of the business day. They arrived at the auto dealership first thing the next morning – and so did Thyre. “I wanted to be there to ensure everything was fine when they opened the box,” she says. “I got to the dealership before it was even open, and I brought coffee and donuts for everybody too.” Thyre’s attention to detail in this situation won over her contacts at the auto dealership, as well as the president of the firm. They all thanked her for correcting the situation as quickly as possible, and the ordeal actually turned into a significant increase in business. The dealer had purchased less than $10,000 worth of products from Thyre’s company before the botched transaction, but now is nearing the six-figure mark. “Sometimes when something goes bad, it gives you an opportunity to show a client how much you care about their business,” Thyre says. “That definitely happened in this case, and it’s been a very positive relationship ever since.” thing goes bad. Every time you give the customer to someone else, you increase your cost.” Speed is the key here, as Tschohl says it’s crucial for the employee to move quickly in order to turn the situation around. “You’ve got to make fast decisions right there on the spot,” he says. “It can’t fester. The person shouldn’t have to call back. You shouldn’t have to talk to a supervisor or manager. You just want the employee who picks up the phone or handles the e-mail to say, ‘I apologize. It’s our fault. Let me tell you what I’m going to do because it was our mistake.’ ” your best marketing tools. Let’s face it – they’re going to talk and tell people about their interac-tions with your company, and you want what they say to be positive. And leaving that lasting impression in the customer’s mind and taking the time to fol-low up will develop them into a loyal customer.” This step is key because even though you think you made a situation right and corrected the original concern, you want to know that a client is completely satisfied with how everything was handled. Follow up to find out if there’s anything further your company can do for the client. Do What You Say You Will If you do run across a situation that an employee simply can’t solve right away, Hogg says that you must promise to respond to the customer within a specified time frame, and you must be true to your word. “If you say, ‘Let me get back to you by Wednesday,’ and you don’t get back to them by Wednesday, your excuse can’t be, ‘Well, I didn’t have an answer by then.’ If you commit to some-thing, fulfill that commitment,” he says. “There’s nothing worse than saying, ‘Let me get back to you,’ and then not getting back to them in a timely manner.” Of course, once a fire is extin-guished, it’s vital for a company to check back in with the client, Evenson says. “Always follow up,” she says. “That leaves a lasting positive impression in a customer’s mind, and your customers are Ask For a Testimonial Unsatisfied clients who trans-form into satisfied ones can become your biggest advocates. “When a customer has a prob-lem or complaint,” Tschohl says, “it’s your opportunity to solve it, and these customers become far more loyal.” As such, Evenson says busi-ness owners shouldn’t be afraid to approach those converted clients with a praise request. “Customer testimonials are so important, especially now with social media,” she says. “People are taking to social media sites to do their complaining and often complimenting, too, because it’s a lot easier to compliment on a social media site where it’s kind of anonymous and you can do it quickly. If you’ve turned your customer around and know that customer’s happy, ask for tes-timonials either to add to your website or to add to your social networking pages.” JULY 2012 | COUNSELOR Tschohl placed a high value on a drink that cost the res-taurant practically nothing. “What’s the cost of a soft drink for the restaurant? Twenty cents?” he says. “Every com-pany has things of high value and low cost, and you want the 46 employee to offer it instantly. All this has to happen in 60 sec-onds. If you have 60 employees, you want all 60 trained on ser-vice recovery, and it would ben-efit you if you can identify the 10 different things of high value you can give away when some- Publication List |
