How to Piss Off Prospective Customers Effortlessly
by Robert Hackman
Photograph by Intricate Explorer on Unsplash
Y’all done pissed me off
Lyric from the song ‘Acquaintances’
By JD
The company ticked me off before we ever got started. Not the way you want to treat prospective customers. The best it can do now is look for a second chance to make a first impression.
The experience gave me a model example of how companies lose customers without trying.
Do you know what turns your customers off? Do you understand your client’s perspectives? Do you deliberately manage your company’s first impressions?
My experience reminded me of a playful exercise I do with teams and companies in which we brainstorm about what they would do if their goal was to rid themselves of customers. It’s a welcome flip on difficult problem-solving, which participants find a lot of fun.
Once we compile a comprehensive list, I ask with a smile, ‘Which of these are we doing now?’
It is an excellent way to root out organizational blind spots that make customer interactions more difficult than they need to be. All companies have them, but they remain unseen until they get reviewed.
In this case, I should have seen it coming, despite having done all I could to prevent it. I could not stop a system that was designed without the customer in mind.
You can decide if I am being petty or if my point is valid.
What happened
Usually, I would not bother making a reservation at a restaurant on a Tuesday evening. However, a colleague was flying into Philadelphia, and I wanted to ensure we did not run into any issues. I made the reservation at 1:00 PM that afternoon.
My problems began with Resy, an automated reservation system designed for restaurants. The establishment provided its customers with no other way to make reservations. Not especially customer friendly – and fair enough.
The system demanded that I put in my credit card information and stated that I may be charged $10 per person if I canceled the reservation. I wanted to avoid this, so I called the restaurant and got no answer.
I then proceeded to go back through the process, assuming the restaurant would not charge me if I acted reasonably.
Originally scheduled to arrive at 3:00 PM, my friend’s flight was postponed a third time, so we called off dinner our 7:30 dinner. He ended up experiencing five flight delays in total and did not arrive until 8:00 PM. Regrettably, an all-too-common occurrence these days.
Since the automated system allowed no way to alter a reservation once it had been made, I left a voicemail on the restaurant’s answering machine and emailed the restaurant canceling the reservation I had made roughly an hour before, explaining what had transpired.
I next received a text after leaving a 5:00 PM meeting requesting me to confirm or cancel the reservation. I canceled it for a third time and was promptly charged $30 for my efforts.
I got punished before I even before I could become a customer. While working in and for companies, I have never found it wise to penalize prospective clients. They do not respond well, especially when used as a first resort!
Instead of focusing intently on attracting and welcoming customers, the firm’s approach was customer repulsion—a strategy I must have missed in business school.
It is a tactic employed by cable companies, banks, and other large corporations when they add fees that are low enough that they do not prompt their customers to leave.
It is an easy way to increase profits without any added cost and without providing any additional benefits. Apparently, some business leaders think this is a good idea.
As a result of their approach, it’s likely I will never be a customer. And I will tell people about my irritating experience—a lousy combination for any business.
When I called the restaurant to request a refund and express my displeasure, the associate seemed surprised that I was aggravated. He told me he would refund my money if I canceled the reservation twenty-four hours before. I informed him I had not and that I had not even made my reservation a day in advance.
Understanding customer perspectives
I get that the restaurant is trying to improve the predictability of its business, maximize its usage capacity, and discourage its clientele from taking its commitments too lightly.
They chose a highly efficient and reliable system. However, it accommodated zero flexibility or variability. They charged customers because they could. It was baked into the system. Does that mean they should?
Rather than striving to stand out positively and make a case for why customers should choose them over competitors. They decided on a system that met their needs and provided a short-term revenue bump at their customers’ expense, leaving no recourse or remedy for them.
Have the owners considered customer reactions to this? If so, do they care? Have I missed something? When did clients become optional?
I experienced the restaurant as a series of frustrations. Is that what the owners want?
Regardless of the situation, sometimes life gets in the way. News flash, penalizing customers does not endear them to you.
I can understand that in select circumstances with difficult-to-access high-end restaurants, it may be warranted to protect the company. That was not the case here.
Managing first impressions
‘First impressions last longest,’ goes the expression. It is trite and true. People remember beginnings and endings most. Consequently, leaders should manage these exceptionally well. Beginnings set the tone for the experience.
They must always consider the customer experience when designing their systems. They need to ask themselves whether they generate friction or harmonization.
All possible situations and their responses need to be considered and planned for in advance. They must test their processes internally and externally to ensure they get the perceptions they need.
Associates should know their options, decision-making authority, and how they can demonstrate what matters most to the company.
Do their protocols and associated interactions represent their highest values? Are they on brand? Do customers feel cared for or considered an afterthought?
Every customer touchpoint provides opportunities to impress or distress. How do your customers feel about you?
Organizations should conduct periodic audits of all their stakeholders to ensure they align with their strategic and cultural intentions.
What is your verdict? Did I emphasize the insignificant or the vital?
You already know my answer.
Worthy Inquiries:
- Do you realize what turns your customers off? Which are your company doing now? Have you tested them?
- In what ways does your firm generate client friction or harmonization?
- How do you balance your company’s internal desires with customers’ needs and wants?
- Do you intentionally plan for and execute how you manage first impressions? Do you design your protocols and coach your people accordingly?
- Do you consciously inculcate strategic and cultural intent within your organization that informs associates of your highest priorities and how they can translate them into customer care?
Please reach out to me for help developing and executing client-friendly systems to benefit you, your team, or your organization. I welcome the conversation.
Robert Hackman, Principal, 4C Consulting – Courageously Curious Consulting and Coaching, helps people live and lead with fewer regrets. He grows and develops leaders through executive coaching, strategy consulting, facilitation, and training of individuals, teams, and organizations. He is committed to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. He facilitates trusting environments that promote uncommonly candid conversations. Rob is also passionate about the power of Everyday Legacies and developing Legacy Mindsets. He has conducted over 50 Legacy interviews with people to date.
A serious man with a dry sense of humor who loves absurdity. Rob can often be found hiking rocky elevations or making music playlists. His varied mixes, including Pandemic Playlists and Music About Men, can be found on Spotify.