Customer Service is more Important than Ever

In a struggling economy, it’s important for businesses to make each sale that much more accommodating to the consumer.

People are spending less, and budgets are tight…and when they do go out to spend money, they want to make it count. Admittedly, this should always be the number one rule of the b2c service industry, but often gets swept under the rug during an influx of business.

As one of my clients so keenly noted in an interview, “if a family is going to only go out to dinner twice a month instead of four times, they’re going to spend a little more and really enjoy themselves.”

I would argue this statement is pretty applicable to other service industries across the board. If people are going to cut back, they want to make sure that the few times they do indulge will be worthwhile.

My rant follows a highly anticipated but disappointing experience at a sandwich joint that resulted in a meal consisting of about 75 pickles wedged in between two pieces of burned, crumbly bread. What sandwich maker would allow a meal of that sort to pass out of the kitchen and represent their brand?

A truly successful brand must have a consistent image conveyed through every individual at the company…right down to the guy who slaps some mayo (and a reasonable number of pickles) between two pieces of bread.

Every interaction is important to your success and brand dissonance=dissatisfaction.