It's the Customer, Stupid!: 34 Wake-up Calls to Help You Stay Client-Focused

Chapter 11. Be a Hero or "Shero" . . . Fix the Problem . . . and Then Fire Whomever Caused It!

Ninety-five percent of unhappy clients will become loyal clients again if their complaints are handled well and quickly. Don't fix the blame; fix the problem!

The Minimum Shaft Job

Unhappy clients will become loyal clients again if their problems are simply handled well and quickly. I believe today's customers are conditioned to what I like to refer to as the minimum shaft theory; that is, what's the minimum hit I'm going to take today? They expect stuff to go wrong and hardly give it a second thought. They have complete confidence in Murphy's Law: that whatever can go wrong, will. I like O'Toole's Law better. He said Murphy was an optimist.

People are almost stunned when planes leave on time and baggage actually arrives at the airport of destination. They don't know how to act. Moreover, they believe that "planned obsolescence" is very much a part of life in general.

Some time back I was traveling through the Atlanta airport, as was the custom for me in those days. Every flight out of South Carolina, when I lived there, connected through Atlanta or Charlotte. Since Delta Air Lines was my most frequent carrier, I got to know all the folks at Hartsfield Airport on a first-name basis. Many actually thought I lived in Atlanta.

One day I was connecting through Atlanta and I needed some orange juice to mix in with some medication I had to take to lower my cholesterol. I'm about to miss my flight ...