When otherwise successful businesses fail ……………..it is time for them to recall their soft skills

We are living in times where businesses are competing with one another for the customer’s attention, through various means and channels. Yet, it intrigues me how even settled business establishments and businesses take it easy when it comes to customer service, and pave the way for their downslide or failure.

Sharing a few cases to illustrate my point, without disclosing the names though. After all, it’s the experiences and the lessons or observations that matter.

Case 1 – The jewelry shop

It is one of the many jewelry shops in the very busy Jayanagar area of Bangalore. Several months ago, I had stepped in looking for something to gift to a bride. The reception was cordial, especially as I had entered soon after the shop was opened for the day and the employees had settled in. Right from the security guard welcoming me, to the assistant there asking us what we would have to quench our thirst, to the way the various designs were shown to me, till the final sales – my experience with the reputed jewelry shop that day was very pleasant. It is still one of my beautiful memories for that day.

The experience was repeated when I visited the same shop 3 months ago, though I had gone without any fixed agenda. But before leaving, I left a request with the sales team to call me when a particular line of jewelry came in, and they happily agreed.

Observation –

It’s more than 3 months now since the above request, but I am yet to get a call from the jewelry shop. I can’t say for sure that they have forgotten to call me despite having the designs I wanted; it’s equally bad if they didn’t call me because there were no suitable designs, for then it would mean that they didn’t procure what I had so badly wanted and conveyed to them also. Either way, it’s certainly made a dent in the confidence I had in their business sense.

I will always remember their hospitality but to me, they are not reliable where doing business with them is concerned. Somewhere I feel business is not important to them. Atleast that’s my perception and as they say, perception is real.

Case 2 – A reputed travel services company

In the first week of February, I had written to the main coordinator of this reputed travel services company for suggestions to environment-rich locations both domestic and overseas. I had explained to her how I love nature and asked for packages to travel destinations that are rich in flora and fauna. She forwarded my query to another, with copy to me, and he in turn forwarded it to his colleague putting a remark ‘Important reference has to be handled very well and with timely reverts’.

Observation –

Obviously, the matter got too diluted to get anyone’s attention. To this day, I have not got a single call or email in response to my request. The travel company lost an attractive business of atleast a   lac or more, considering a good package for two people I had expected from them. I am still not able to get over their stark silence. Should I call it indifference?

Lean chance that I will ever refer this travel company to anyone. Not for personal travel for sure – said this as the company assists many corporates in business travel.

Case 3 – A popular automobile sales-cum-service centre

I visited this popular automobile sales-cum-service centre in the last week of February, after fixing an appointment with them, to check into an annoying squeaky noise in my car. I parked my car near the Security cabin, and waited for someone to come to me, but, none – not one – came and checked what I wanted. When I asked the Reception, they casually remarked that someone would see me soon and to wait. I sought out the Customer care manager and broached about this attitude, but she brushed it aside saying they were concerned for customers. She then called a technician and asked him to check my car. But he rather seemed keen to grumble to her, oblivious of my presence right there, that they had overbooked cars for service on that day and worried how he would manage with limited workforce.

Then he turned towards me, heard me and deciding it was a minor problem took my car aside and resolved the problem. However, he suggested that the car needed engine oil change and replacement of an important part, and both would require my car to be left with them for a whole day. I left asking him to inform me in advance so that I could plan the car work with minimum or zero disturbance to my daily life.

Observation –

Going by the assurance of the technician that he would place the order immediately for the part which would have to come all the way from another state, I would think my car got serviced long back. Yet, the service centre has maintained stoic silence. I got several SMSes about many offers, but no call about the issue in my car.

The centre did not lose just business of nearly 10K which he had estimated for the oil change and replacement of the part, but more just in case I decide to go for a new car. Worse, they lost my trust.  I got my car work done elsewhere for half the estimated money. The automobile centre is the only one within a radius of about 10 Kms. and can do better if they take time to hear their customer and act promptly.

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Thanks to the above experiences, these days whenever I hear of the downfall of a certain business, I attempt to analyse the cause of it, and most often it turns out to be neither the lack of finance nor capability to continue to remain in business, but the absence of soft skills to maintain the edge with which they started off and to retain the loyalty of customers.

Businesses beware, for customers are all the more equipped today than before, and find ways of satisfying themselves and getting the right value for their money. So putting it simply, customers will not chase businesses, it will have to be the other way round.