Marketing Demystified Blog

In order to explain, I’d like to share a story with you.

Not too long ago I went to our local Costco warehouse.  During my trip I noticed a handy gadget that my family just had to have…a two-in-one paper cutter.

On one end it had a guillotine-type slicing blade and on the other side it had a rotary (rolling) cutter that is safe for even the smallest of little fingers.  The best part is that the two cutters can be separated from one another so two people could cut paper for projects at the same time.

Since my wife Cheryl is into crafts, and my daughter Emma loves to do projects with her, this cutter was perfect.  And it was even a deal at under $30.

So I tossed it in my cart and didn’t gave it a second thought…at least not until I got home and noticed the straight cutting wheel from the rotary cutter wasn’t anywhere to be found.

Since I didn’t have time to go back to Costco, and I really didn’t feel like exchanging it anyway, I decided to call the company instead.

Here’s what happened…

A very friendly gentleman named Steve answered by saying, “Thank you for calling Purple Cows, this is Steve, how can I help you today?”

Once I explained my story, he promptly apologized for the problem.  He stated that this certainly isn’t a usual occurrence, but clearly they must have left the piece off at the factory.  He said that he would rush a few extra cutting wheels off to me and again he was sorry for the problem.

He then asked if I needed anything else.

I was so impressed at how nice and accommodating Steve was. I thanked him for handling the situation so quickly and easily for me. He then thanked me for calling and we hung up.

Here’s what I thought would happen next…

I expected that in 7 to 10 business days I would receive a package with one or two straight cutting wheels.

Instead, here’s what really happened…

A day or two later a FedEx package arrived containing a set of 12 cutting wheels.  Not only did the set include the missing straight cutting wheel, but it also included wheels to make fancy cuts, such as pinking, scalloping, waves, squiggles and more.  (I have to admit that I’m not all that excited about crafting, but according to my wife these extra wheels will be great for all kinds of fun projects.)

And that’s when I decided that Purple Cows is a company that clearly understands today’s lesson…moments of truth in your business.

Things happen.  It is a fact of life…and of business.

Sometimes things arrive broken or missing.  Packages have been known to get lost in the mail from time to time.  Maybe the wrong item was shipped, or nothing was shipped at all.  Maybe the product didn’t quite live up to the buyer’s expectations.  Or maybe it just wasn’t the right product for them in the first place.

We all have had these experiences in our lives.

It is in these moments of truth that your business has the opportunity to really shine.

You have the unique opportunity to go over and above to help endear your customer to your company – or to make them want to tell everyone how terrible you are.

In this day of social media these moments of truth can play a pivotal role in the success (or failure) of your business!

Do you resolve problems quickly and professionally?  Do you seem to go out of your way to make your customer feel like the problem wasn’t their fault?

Does the solution you provide more than make up for the inconvenience of the problem?

With Purple Cows it certainly did.

Not only did Steve send 11 extra cutting wheels, that may wife and daughter can use to make all kinds of unusual cuts, but he sent them as quickly as possible (via FedEx).  On top of all this, Steve didn’t question whether the piece fell out into the box, or if I was confused about how many cutting wheels were included with the cutter.

He just went above and beyond and solved the problem for me in the best way he possibly could.

The truth is that the retail price on the set of blades is more than I paid for the cutter.  Plus last time I checks, FedEx isn’t cheap either.

But none of that really matters!

Steve (and Purple Cows) realizes that a happy customer is a loyal customer.

Here are a few things you can do to help resolve these moments of truth in your business.

1)  Think service first.

Sure it cost more for the full set of 12 blades…and to ship them so quickly.  But when the package arrived there was absolutely no doubt in my mind that Purple Cows believes in service first.

2) Believe your customers

Steve had no way to verify that I wasn’t making the whole things up just to get something for free. He was quick to say that although it doesn’t happen often, on rare occasions things have been left off at the factory and that they would happily ship it to me.

3) Empower your staff to solve problems.

Steve didn’t have to speak to his Supervisor in order to resolve the issue.  He was very quick to apologize for the issue and to say he would send out some replacements blades.

I didn’t need to wait on the line for approval or to speak to three other people

4) Act quickly

The replacement blades were obviously sent right away because I received them a day or two later.  As fast as FedEx is, if Purple Cows dragged their feet to ship the package it would have taken many more days to get to me.

5) Be friendly

Obviously if people are angry, don’t try to be cute or funny with them until you calm them down and can tell they are even in the mood to joke around.  But being friendly and light-hearted can go a long way to diffuse the situation and make the customer happy.

Remember, the way you handle these moments of truth can help set you apart from your competitors, and can help you build loyal customers.

Things happen. The real question is…how will you handle them?

Are you being innovative and giving more, or are you merely solving the problem?

Remember, marketing (and good service) doesn’t stop when you get a customer…that’s when it really just gets started.

Until next time…happy marketing!

Jonathan

If you would like more information on Purple Cows products you can visit their web site at www.purplecows.net.