Are We Sure All Customers Deserve Adequate Service and Attention?

A subject that needs adequate consideration when it comes to retaining your hard earned customers is the question: Do all customers deserve adequate service and attention?

Some people are known to be Influencers which have a social influence, and may make or mar your business in a social scene if not given adequate attention. We all agree that it is a usual thing to provide a better service level to someone with a high social value, someone who has an influence all other variables like monetary variables being equal. And this is a right thing to do for companies or businesses with more customer-facing products or which are customer-centric. In some cases these influencers may not actually be in business with you but he still has a social influence on your business or he may be a once dissatisfied customer of yours.

This influencer which can use all the popular social media around to distract your valuable customer will have to be rewarded in one way or the other to save you a great loss. But in a cynical view, we are rewarding whiners which is wrong but on the other hand, we need to retain our customers.

It is a clear fact that customers must complain and their complaints should be seen as a gift to the company. There is an exciting blog post that explains why customer’s complaints are gifts. Because some customers would rather leave your company without complaining and tarnish the image of your company in the public through negative reports about your company, you should rather appreciate the ones that have the patience to complain. But what of those that complain through online social media?

Yes it is true, all customers deserve good services, but in our world of today there is a gradation of quality of services that each type of a customer should deserve. Some deserve more than good, say excellent and furthermore, some deserve exceptional services. This is all based on the value of each customer, which we must know that in this social age is not only monetary value but social value, Influence. It is not a new story that one unsatisfied customer will tell eleven or more people if you don’t solve his problem or reward him in time be it that he is the highest monetary valued customer or the least. What should be considered most is that customer retention is cheaper and more effective than acquisition. So why don’t you stake all that is possible in other to keep hold of your already acquired customers.

This subject came into scene due to the recent trend in online social media. These vocal influencers as long as they have significant number of followers and fans already pose a threat to companies. With most online social media shifting the support towards to consumers, these influencers have their full support. But some of these vocal influencers forget that power comes with responsibility and others should be treated with respect. Some people suggest that we need a new social contract that requires social dignity and responsibility from both sides. Is this really possible? The truth is that not everybody, companies, business firms are ready to reward whiners, so what alternative way can be used to curb these influencers which may have a negative influence on your business and retain your customers?

What is your view on this vital matter?