Flip the Funnel: How to Use Existing Customers to Gain New Ones

CUSTOMER SERVICE NEEDS A MEMORY; IT IS A COMMITMENT, NOT A ONE-OFF HAPPENSTANCE

This rule draws on the need for integration and interdepartmental cooperation and collaboration. If “marketing is not a campaign; it’s a commitment”, then there’s no more important commitment than that which we make to our lifeblood—our customers.

It’s all well and good to talk about this, but the proof of the pudding is in the eating. We need to visibly demonstrate our commitment to our customers in practice and in action. They need to explicitly feel its effect and benefits.

One of the best ways to activate a long-term promise is to move from a goldfish approach to the elephant ninja stance. Earlier, I made the point that our customers have long memories. Now we need to show them that we do, too.

How many times have you made that fateful call to a service center where you’re asked to say or key in your 16-digit account number, only to have the agent on the line immediately ask you for your account number? In my case and with my accent, I typically have to repeat it several times! Once you’ve managed to clearly convey this all-important number, the agent will typically proceed to ask you a series of probing questions for even more information, including date of birth, Social Security number, mother’s maiden name, and where your first pet was buried. Only then do you get a chance to share your problem, upon which the agent tells you that you’ve reached the wrong department and he needs to transfer ...