Driving Customer Loyalty: Three Guiding Principles That Work
The universe never fails to humble us. Things can change in an instant. For our customers it can mean disorderly implementations, critical system outages, cyber-incidents, or missed expectations—all disrupting business outcomes in unique ways. I’ve experienced my share of these customer moments. Some are resolved relatively smoothly and seamlessly, but there are definitely times when I’ve witnessed all heck break loose. Diffusing a difficult situation isn’t just a valuable skill, it’s fundamental to building lasting a relationship with your customers through the best and the worst of times. Though uncomfortable, these are the moments that truly define our relationships.
We all love a working and profitable relationship with our customers. That’s the good stuff. But what’s the best strategy when things get bumpy? Do you have a plan? Do you feel confident that your customer won’t jump ship?
Customers Are People First
As we know, there is no one-size-fits-all customer. Because of that, it’s incumbent upon us to understand what moves them. What are their critical success factors? What are their biggest roadblocks? And, ultimately, what is their end game? Creating a time-tested relationship with a customer comes down to fundamentals. Who is listening? Who empathizes with me? Who corroborates my perspective? The more you understand the root of the customer need and what their desired end goals are—the more effective your guidance and partnership will be.
With that empathy comes power. At the end of the day, we all choose to partner with the person that makes us feel seen and heard. Not necessarily as just a customer, but as a human being. Understanding that there is no cookie-cutter approach to a relationship means we must take the time to peel back those unique layers. Creating that dynamic will win you the business every time. The most successful sales and customer success professionals are the ones that create a bond that supersedes any “widget” they may be selling. Read that again.
Listen, Learn, and Lead
Be sure you understand your customer. Know how they tick and what they need from you in this moment—and what they’ll need as you work together to solve the problem. Having that knowledge up front and early will pay off throughout the relationship. I can’t emphasize that enough. How we show up in challenging times will either breed trust—or it will breed uncertainty. You must be the calm in their storm. And the only way to do that is to have established that bond from the start.
I once had a team member who was dealing with a very frustrated customer due to a delayed go-live of a critical enterprise system. Emotions were all over the place. The customer needed to vent. We listened. And we listened some more. And then my team member did two things: she acknowledged their feedback and apologized for their frustration; then she focused on how to best create a path forward. And through it all, she saw the customer as an individual first, and a customer beyond that. And it worked. Regardless of our position, our titles, our station in life—people want to be understood, they want to know that lessons are being learned and they want to know that a plan is in place to get things back on track.
The rest is easy. Stay calm. Stay level-headed. Your cool and composed demeanor is going to bring a huge sense of relief to your customer. Focus on a resolution—not the problem. Find alternatives and solutions versus dwelling on the issues. Work together, suggest alternatives, show your customer that together you’ll it right.
Say What You’ll Do, Do What You Say
“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place” —George Bernard Shaw
Let’s talk transparency. Maybe you have a customer that has high expectations for one of their tools, but the version they’re using is antiquated. Part of being a full-service partner is staying in front of what our customers need and clearly communicating these points on a recurring basis. In other words, we need to continually educate them on the state of today, and what it’s going to take to get to ‘their version’ of tomorrow. We must connect the dots for our customers. Constantly. And if things veer off course, we need to be extremely transparent about what happened and what we’re going to do about it. Any unpleasant ‘surprise’ is usually due to a lack of communications and follow-through. Most of these are avoidable.
Over the years, I’ve learned that handling conflict truly comes down to understanding the person on the other side of it. Being an effective partner, in any situation, means showing up equipped with the right knowledge, an attitude that exudes confidence, and the ability to put the customers’ mind-set first. Every interaction with a customer, even a challenging one, presents a chance to learn, adapt, and create a deeper connection and a more profitable future for everyone.
Always a good thing.
Colin Murphy is senior vice president of customer success and chief customer officer at BMC Software. Murphy is responsible for evolving and leading a global organization of success management and support professionals. He has more than 20 years of experience as a technology executive, having held leadership positions at CA Technologies, the Boeing Company, and Unisys Corporation.