How would you respond?

Had a disturbing response to a refund request recently. I’d bought stuff over the years – liked what the chap produced.

But this time, thought it wasn’t up to scratch – and took him up on his offer for a refund for, wait for it, $27.

This is exactly the response I got:

“You have been refunded for the $27 and blocked from future purchases from here on out. Isn’t it rather short sighted to refund a mere $27 then, knowing the value of the work over the last 20 years? Additionally… it really is embarrassing to treat someone with that cheap of an attitude and anyone who does is immediately and permanently banned from further purchase and removed from our list.

This is the most important work to date. Anyone who is in sales and wrote as you did is simply not trying to see the value.

We simply have no need for such short sighted people.”

Wow!!! Rather short sighted on his part. Just lost a future client – because he took his bat and ball and went home in a huff.

What would it have cost him to say something along these lines (sent in by a reader)?

“Do we get things 100% right all the time? Well, to be frank, no we don’t. But you know what, we’ve been in business for over 40 years and we haven’t been there this long without knowing the problems in advance that are likely to happen and we have a team here who are willing and waiting to help you!

And if we do make a mistake ourselves, whatever that may be, we’ll fix it! Guaranteed!”

All of which highlights a very important point.

Our clients judge us by our service not just by when things are going well, but how we respond when we’ve stuffed up.

Over the years we’ve conducted a lot of interviews on behalf of our clients to find out where they’re doing well and where they’re not doing so well in the eyes of their clients.

And the one thing that stands out above all is that people have long memories. They’ll remember something that went wrong, even if it was years in the past and even if you fixed it. They remember how you responded and whether you took responsibility or not and how you made them feel.

Your clients will develop an even greater level of trust and loyalty if something went wrong, and you fixed it and you looked after them.

So next time something goes wrong, even if it’s not your fault, ask yourself how you could respond in a way that increases trust and loyalty.

Ignorance is not bliss ??

If you’d like help finding out what your clients really think of you, one of the most effective ways to gain this understanding is through conducting in-depth customer interviews. The key to these interviews lies in asking the right questions, which can unlock insights that drive growth and innovation.

Contact me on +61 414 913 334 and I’ll walk you through the service.

Rashid.

P.S. Whenever you’re ready … here are ways I can help you lead a better business and live a better life:

1) Access a range of free resources which help you attract, engage and convert new clients. Click Here.

2) Get rapid advice - Clarity and Focus Sessions help you look at situations from different angles, probing so you get clarity and then conviction as to the best course of action. Click Here.

3) Professional Sales Mastery - Increase your sales effectiveness and efficiency so you close more profitable business in less time. Click Here.

Rashid Kotwal & Barbara Sauter Revealed Resources Building better businesses Mob: +61 414 913334

E: [email protected]

W: https://revealedresources.com

Linkedin: https://au.linkedin.com/in/rashidkotwal