It goes without saying that the interactions your business has with prospects need to be thoughtful, consistent (not just regular, but fit together well), and engaging. It’s a bit like dating when your goal is to find a long-term relationship. You’re wooing them by showing off the best you’ve got.

Then one day they push the button to buy. Or maybe they book a consult and ask you to send an agreement. And you do a little dance to celebrate that success. Your marketing worked and now they get to be your customer.

One might think the marketing is over for that customer, but it isn’t. Every touchpoint you have in your process with that customer is marketing your business to them. If the experience isn’t good, do you think they’ll stay?

Let me tell you the tale of a customer lost

A mistake with no fault

I recently made an online purchase - my second from this particular company I’ll call ACME Stuff. Regarding my ACME Stuff order, I was in no hurry to receive the items I was purchasing. I felt I was charged a fair price. And I was confident I’d be satisfied with my purchase based on my previous experience.

Fast forward a week or two (or more - I can’t remember), and 6 packages (4 orders) arrived all on the same day. My son had fun opening everything with me and distributing the orders amongst our family. In one box, there was a Honda air filter. It was shipped to me, which was strange, but I didn’t look closely at the shipping label - I just put it on my husband’s desk assuming it was his.

When Matt got home after work, he was perplexed by the filter. It wasn’t his. I looked at the label more closely and realized it had items listed on the label that should have been from ACME Stuff! One of the other packages we got that day had one of the items in it and this box was supposed to have the rest.

Clearly, something went awry in the fulfillment and distribution of my order. No big deal. I wasn’t in a rush, so I took some pictures to email and let them know about the error.

An automated system with no sense

On June 1, just a couple of hours after I opened those packages, I got an email from ACME Stuff that my order had been delivered. I replied to it the next day (June 2, 7pm) to describe the problem and I attached the photos showing the shipping label and the contents of the box.

About 30 minutes later I got an automated reply letting me know they’ll be in touch within 72 hours - pandemic = longer wait. Cool, no biggie. Then I got another automated email 2.5 hours after that saying they’d be in touch within 72 hours with a longer explanation of their pandemic challenges. O-kay. Cool.

On June 3, I got this (also an automated email):

Hey Karen Wilson! 

We were in touch a day ago about an issue you had and just wanted to check if everything is okay now.

Still need help? We got you! Just hit REPLY and we’ll get back to you within 24 hours ‒ pinky promise! 😉

Have a great day!

This came in at 11pm so I didn’t see it until the next day. And now I’m confused. Did they send me a real response that I missed? Has the timeline changed (technically, we’re not even 48 hours into the 72 hours, but I now have a pinky promise that someone is going to be in touch in 24 hours. Have I been escalated? 🤞🏻

On June 4, I replied at 2:51pm as directed in the latest email. And received this after 11pm that night:

Hey Karen! 

We were in touch several days ago about an issue you had and just wanted to check up on you one more time.

I bet everything’s okay now so I'll close this request. If you need more help though, simply visit [the ACME Stuff website].

Have a great day!

Accurate representation of me reading this email:

I re-sent my original email to the company and then went to ACME Stuff’s Facebook page to send them a message as well, explaining the whole situation. I’m still not really upset, though I’m starting to feel frustrated and maybe a little panicked that I’m going to get nothing for the money I spent. (Ironically, we haven’t even hit the original 72-hour mark at this point, but I’ve received 4 automated emails with confusing, conflicting messaging.)

A resolution(?) without communication

Resending that original email kicked off the same chain of automated emails. 🤦🏼‍♀️ And the admins managing the Facebook page did respond with the promise to look into it - (yay, a response from a real person).

Next thing I know, I have an email confirming my refund for the full amount of the purchase - a refund I didn’t ask for or even want.

I brought that up with the Facebook admins and shared my frustration with the situation as it had played out to this point. They were responsive, understanding, and apologetic about what was happening. Unfortunately, over in my inbox, things weren’t looking up.

After the exchange I had with the admins on Facebook, I got another automated email reply that gave me self-service options, none of which addressed the issue I had. And this is where I gave up.

But ACME Stuff didn’t. Two days later, I received this:

Aww! So sorry for this mishap.
I'm here now to turn things around for you.

Although a refund was already processed, we still want to make things right!

We can send you a free replacement for the missing items.

The email went on to say they were out of stock in the size ordered and asked if I would like to get the same item 2 sizes larger. I replied back to politely decline the offer and 3 days later I was still getting automated emails from their system.

ACME Stuff is doing automation wrong.

Confusion. Frustration. Bewilderment. These aren’t words you want people to associate with your brand, but they are burned into my brain when it comes to ACME Stuff. And it was 100% avoidable.

Here are some things you can do to evaluate the process you use with your customers.

You need immerse yourself in their experience

In marketing, we test and review work to the extent possible before we hit the go button. We want to make sure the links all work, the typos are all gone, the message is clear and it points the reader/listener/watcher toward a clear goal.

The same level of attention should be given to the interactions your business has with its customers. In fact, according to research from Genesys, one in three customers will pay more to receive a higher level of service. This shows the value of good service.

There should be an intentional process that reflects the importance of the interaction - a really well-tested intentional process, especially if it’s in any way automated.

You should build it so that it branches in relevant ways to address the customer’s need - that means anticipating the different issues that are going to come up. You can’t identify every one, so give customers an exit from the automation for those unicorn situations.

When you have it all set up, thoroughly test the experience you’ve designed to find the areas that need attention. When you find a flaw (even after it goes live), you fix it so your customers feel delight instead of dismay.

Understand what’s at stake with poor customer experience

According to research from NewVoiceMedia:

“Faced with poor customer service, 31 percent of respondents indicated they’d never use the offending company again, 41 percent would write a complaint email/ letter, 29 percent would change suppliers, 20 percent would post an online review, a fifth would complain publicly via social media, 8 percent would tell friends and colleagues not to use the company, and 4 percent would even inform the media. Just 15 percent would take no action.”

Those are big stakes when only 15% of people are willing to let bad service go. It illustrates how important it is to design customer-centric processes that are both efficient and effective - for the customer first and foremost.

After you’ve done all the tests and gone live, go through it again as if you’re the customer. What’s it like when the real deal comes along? If you’re using automation to scale your work, there can be some unintended impacts. Have you found all the potential gaps?

Even when you think you’ve found every last one, keep your eyes open.

Listen to customers and respond within reason

Automation has given many businesses the ability to grow and scale, but the downside is a reliance that often leaves the customer in limbo. You can’t listen to customers or have meaningful interactions through a bot that lacks any nuance. Scale back the automation and listen with intention.

I enjoy when customers tell me what they need. Recently, one of mine shared that they work best with specific instructions and examples, giving me valuable information I could use to help them more effectively. Are you listening to your customers when they provide this kind of feedback? If it works for one, it can benefit others, too.

Stepping into their shoes, understanding what they need and works best for them makes you even better at what you do. That doesn’t mean you have to implement every suggestion - “no” is a valid answer.

Prioritize first based on your plans. Then follow up since they took the time to give you input.

Customer experience is vital to retaining customers

When you design your customer experience, the last thing you want to do is lose the customer in the process. If you’re putting the customer at the centre of the process, they’ll feel important, valued, and heard - and be more likely to come back for more. And ultimately, that’s the goal when designing the experience for your customers - that they’ll want to return and invite their friends.