home : hartbeat : maybe-the-customer-isn-t-always-right

06.07.2002

“HartBeat” is The Hartman Group's FREE online newsletter, providing insight, analysis, information and strategy to give business leaders the knowledge and vision to build sustainable brands.

Archives »
Click here for an archive of past HartBeat articles

digg
del.icio.us

reddit
twitter

friendfeed

StumbleUpon

Maybe The Customer Isn't Always Right

A few weeks ago I was fidgeting in line at my neighborhood coffee shop. It was early, I was still half asleep, and the customer in front of me was in the initial stages of a full-on tirade. The problem? The shop had yet to receive their weekly delivery of soymilk, and they had apparently run out the night before:

"What do you mean you are out of soymilk?" the customer bleated, "What are vegans and the rest of us who are allergic to milk supposed to do?"

The barista was polite and sincerely apologetic, suggesting that the problem was unexpected and they were trying to work out delivery problems with their local distributor. As a means of appeasing the increasingly frustrated customer, the barista even offered her a complimentary Americano.

"A free Americano is the least you can do," the customer retorted, "In fact, I would assume that my juice and croissant will also be comped."

The barista then replied (nervously), "Ummmm, I don't think I'm allowed to start giving products away just because we run out of soymilk..."

"What do you mean? I come here every day for my latte because you offer soymilk, and it's not my fault you screwed up. Remember, I am the customer here!"

With that, the barista politely relented, offering the customer her breakfast for free and promising to have the problem corrected by the next morning.

* * *

As of late, much of the discussion in consumer marketing and retailing circles has addressed themes such as authenticity, honesty, community and humanity. The current thinking instructs us to treat the consumer as an equal, attempting to engage him or her in an honest dialogue, a sincere conversation and a fair transaction.

The recent book phenomenon The Cluetrain Manifesto, (Locke et al, 2000) advises commercial firms to work toward developing honest conversations with customers. The "New Sincerity," it seems, is upon us.

While I firmly believe these are positive developments in consumer marketing and retailing sectors, the important thing to remember is that they cannot necessarily be overlaid directly on top of existing practices and operational logics. In many situations, the implementation of such approaches requires a fundamental restructuring and re-evaluation of the consumer/commerce relationship. Case in point: It is difficult to treat the consumer as an equal - engaging them in an honest relationship and a sincere conversation - if all parties know that, deep down, the commercial firm must always default to the old maxim, "The customer is always right." Most of us recognize that any marriage resting on such a fundamental imbalance of power is likely doomed from the start, so why do we pretend to accept such a relationship in arenas of commerce?

Perhaps the age-old maxim should be restated as follows: the customer is mostly right.

Of course, you could substitute "often," "frequently," or "routinely," for "mostly," in the proverb above, but I think you get the general idea. Likewise, I would also add the following corollaries:

b) The customer, too, bears responsibility in relationships of commerce.

c) When the customer is exceeding clearly established boundaries, we should not hesitate to defend our position(s), albeit professionally and politely.

d) Defending our position(s) as in item "c" above demonstrates to the rest of the consumer world - our customers - that we are "human," that we are "for real," that we are "who we say we are."

e) Giving away free stuff and cow-towing to unreasonable customer demands is not an advisable strategy when addressing customer disputes.

In short, much like those who have learned to successfully negotiate personal relationships, retailers should give customers the benefit of the doubt and treat them with respect. Likewise, when we err (we are, after all, only human), we shouldn't hesitate to repair the damage in a reasonable and sincere manner. We should not, however, feel compelled to grant ridiculous concessions and unwarranted bonuses in a slavish attempt to adhere to (often outmoded) notions of "customer service" and "mission statements." As a friend taught me, a bouquet of flowers goes a long way toward making amends for a forgotten anniversary or a missed dinner date. The very minute this gesture becomes expected, however, all utility is lost.

Comment »