Enticed by Discounts; Impressed by Customer Experience
A few weeks ago, I believed I was about to prove the point I had made in earlier blog posts on loyalty programs that discounts and coupons merely encourage customers to "game" the system and try to get something for little or nothing. It doesn’t lead to true loyalty. A local (greater Boston area) sports bar/restaurant chain, the Halfway Café, seems to be suffering from the lack of disposable income on the part of customers, because it is advertising heavily and offering significant specials and discounts. The most recent was the entire menu for half price on a Monday and T

When You have Problems, Let Your Customers be Part of the Solution
About eight years ago, when we were still publishing hardcopy newsletters, I wrote an editorial contrasting the customer experience I had flying two different airlines in the midst of a snowy winter’s trip. Basically, my United flight from Vancouver was delayed, making me very concerned that I’d miss my connection in Denver, which was to bring me to Atlanta. No one from the airline would tell us what the problem was (Weather? Equi

Arm your Front-Line Troops!
You know who they are--your direct sales force, your call center representatives, your online support chat agents--the people who "talk" directly to customers when there is a problem. Most of the time, these people are well-trained, well-spoken, and well-intentioned. They are usually truly sympathetic--even empathetic. But they often work either with their hands tied up in red tape or with too little information to truly address the customers’ problems.   My most recent experience occ

Loyalty Requires a Relationship
I started to think about what vendors I truly am loyal to, and it’s a short list: • My auto mechanic• My hairdresser• My primary-care doctor And, while price might play some part—my hairdresser is less expensive than many competitors, but more so than others; my auto mechanic fixes minor problems, like a flat tire, for free for me, but charges me standard prices on major repairs—it is the relationship that I value. None of these have rewards cards or loyalty programs. I’m not given a darn thing if I refer someone to them, except a thank you. But I’m not planning to go elsewhere because each of these providers—Jimmy at Hynes Auto, Mark at Ozma Ha