Why can't big brands like these get their act together in terms of design and execution of smoother customer experiences? In each case, the issues were at a simple transactional level, nothing complex. Handling such issues is not rocket science any more, and there is so much learning out there on how to do this cheaper, faster and better. I do realize that handling 'outliers' is not easy - for each business, no matter how big or small, there's always the question of how far do you go to satisfy the customer. Seth Godin makes the point rather eloquently, as he usually does, in his recent blog post. In my case, I am not an outlier and I am not expecting customer delight - just basic transactional efficiency. Why is that such a hard promise to deliver on? And if it is, then why make such a promise? One would think competition would solve these problems, but sadly, it hasn't. I can't even say "Screw you, I'm taking my business to the next guy" simply because I know that the next guy is going to be equally bad, if not worse. And I know this from previous experiences. It is almost as though they all collude and decide to remain inefficient and apathetic to customer needs.
As is my wont, when in a more relaxed frame of mind, I look for the silver lining in all my bad experiences and ask myself what's in it for me. And this was my (re)learning this week: when it comes to customer interactions, learn the art of listening and never undermine the 'importance of being earnest'. Nothing fancy, just a simple truth that we need to remind ourselves about, each time we're facing our customers. They can walk away. When they have a better alternative, they will. We don't have to wait till then - we have the opportunity to become the better alternative!
