In 1958 John Kenneth Galbraith famously took on the economic doctrine of Consumer Sovereignty. First floated by Paul Samuelson, this theory held that consumers, by right of their choice in the marketplace, were ultimately the sovereign beings who determine what is produced and the price at which it is sold.
Galbraith put a bullet in that one, but I’m not sure the message got out to the rest of us. Indeed, as marketers, we often retreat to the tried and true customer service angle when we’re out of anything more interesting to say.
Find me a website, bit of collateral or sales talk track that doesn’t discuss the unwavering commitment to customer service, the massive emotional investment of the entire company in the happiness of its customers, and the relentless pursuit of service excellence and I will show you someone who is either not on their game or happens to be telling the truth.
The truth is that very, very few companies are truly serious about customer service. With notable exceptions at Zappos, Ritz-Carlton and Disney, most companies talk a good game but don’t really want to pay for it. Here’s why that makes sense: customers are not always right. I’m sorry if that shocks you, and I am sure you are the sole exception.
After all, the last 45 times you called your mobile phone company, lawn care provider, bank or airline, you were absolutely right and they were absolutely wrong. Right? Which means that when everybody calls their suppliers they, too, are absolutely right and the suppliers are absolutely wrong. A few minutes on Facebook, Yelp or brand-hating sites will provide ample evidence of just how right we all are.
Deep down, however, we know that isn’t true. Every single one of us has lashed out at some poor store clerk, call centre agent or airline worker when we failed to read something correctly, didn’t like the weather or forgot to show up with the right bits of paper. And even when we own up to our role in the situation, we get the last word in the customer survey, showing them who’s boss with a nasty NPS rating.
Which brings me back to John Kenneth. Economists may have signed off on the myth of consumer sovereignty, but I’m not sure the rest of us got the memo. In fact, I think consumers are getting worse –we’re turning into petulant, self-indulgent despots who are generally giving a bad name to sovereigns everywhere. We’re becoming adept at manipulating the insecurities of our suppliers to get free stuff, big discounts and sweet perks. Customer Abuse departments everywhere are investing not in better billing systems, nicer people or longer service hours; they’re investing in save offers, trinkets and replacing the demoralized people who are tired of apologizing.
The truth is, it’s probably cheaper to replace most of our customers than it is to live up their entitled expectations. If your churn numbers are up, there is a good chance you and your competitors are trading the same disgruntled customers with one another over and over as they surf from supplier to supplier looking for a crown, a sycophantic mirror and a landau carriage.
I don’t imagine we’re going to solve the problem of entitled consumers any time soon, but I know the answer lies in setting realistic expectations and being willing to jettison rude, ignorant customers who aren’t getting the equation.
This year, marketers should resolve to find and destroy all the unrealistic proclamations of customer joy, obsequious service and free stuff we are flinging about the universe and seriously reconsider the notion that most of us can differentiate on the basis of service.
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How to Save $50,000 on Customer Research
A New Metric for the Call Centre
BizMarketer is Elizabeth Williams
You can reach me at escwilliams@gmail.com
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