Service, not pride, inspires loyalty

A recent article in the New York Times, “Companies Find They Can’t Buy Love with Bargains,” poses the question of why consumer brand loyalty is weakening in spite of overall improvements in product performance, innovation and value, at the same time as prices continue to decline (think Wal-Mart, Target and JetBlue).

It’s now a fact of life that economy-pricing is no longer the compelling point-of-difference that it was a decade ago given today’s highly competitive brand universe.

Customers want more

Let’s be honest. Today’s savvy buyer is always looking for a good deal, whether it’s a discounted price or enhanced value from the transaction. But, in consideration of brand loyalty, that same buyer is seeking customer empathy with the brand.

The irony is most brands don’t even attempt a false or fake empathy, something that most customers would settle for in a pinch if it was communicated in an appropriate fashion. A number of recent personal incidents best illustrate the contention.

The silent real estate agent

Within the last 60 days, I sold my home at a significant price point. At a 6 percent commission rate, my agent will derive a heavy return on a limited investment of money and time.

I do not begrudge my agent his/her commission. I clearly understood and accepted the financial ramifications going in. What I do find unusual is the lack of a single phone call from my agent following the signing of the sales contract.

Any contact between us has been with the administrative assistant who facilitated the preparation for closing. It would have been nice to have received a congratulatory phone call, e-mail or card, or perhaps a cheap bottle of champagne … anything to acknowledge the success of the transaction and an appreciation for the business.

Such treatment may not be mandatory, but for a five-figure commission deal, demanding a significant degree of what Naisbett would term “high-touch,” it certainly would have left a positive impression, perhaps leading to repeat business and referrals down the road.

Call center blues

As a recent “60 Minutes” program revealed, you can teach Indian operators the fundamentals of American pronunciation and accent. Conveying empathy is a different proposition.

That requires an understanding of the consumer mindset, of the unique fashion in which we, demanding Americans, respond to pain, aggravation and failure to fix the problem according to our high, even unreasonable expectations.

I have great respect for India, its people, its culture and its remarkable foray into the technology universe, but my heart sinks when I dial a U.S. company and hear that my problem is about to be addressed by an operator in Bangalore reading from a computer screen.

I suspect that U.S. companies will eventually get the message and return their boiler rooms to U.S. shores in spite of the significant savings of outsourcing.

Consumer empathy will demand it.

A host with bad manners

And finally, there’s my ex-Web hosting company, which, because of problems with its over-taxed servers, unilaterally decided to restrict my incoming e-mail until they could get their house in order.

I understand the problems caused by spam as it clogs up the email channels. I even understand restricting the volume. But to do so without the common courtesy of a warning is unconscionable.

It took a half dozen phone calls and the application of third-degree torture to arrive at the truth.

The upshot is that I now have a new Web host in spite of a prior relationship going back more than five years. When will technical people understand that good technology by itself is not the complete answer?

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