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Good Brands Gone Bad

I had a terrible experience with a great company I admire recently. It was worse than the lukewarm coffee I drank the other day, or that time I had to wait for hours at Denpasar airport, because I’ve come to expect that from dodgy delis and Indonesian immigration. This experience shocked me because of my high expectations.

Recently the luxury high-end bridal designer Vera Wang started charging customers in her Shanghai store 3,000 Yuan (approximately AU$500) just for the honour of trying on her gowns. If the bride-to-be ends up buying one of the iconic dresses the fee is deducted from the final price, but I don’t think that lessens the sting.

One bad apple ruins the bunch.

One bad apple ruins the bunch.

Vera says the fee was imposed to protect the copyright of her designs. This is a valid concern. But there has to be a better way to do it than by undermining the Vera Wang brand by stinging and disappointing potential customers. Consumers expect more from a luxury brand.

If you have a great reputation, it’s important not to overlook the finer details. I was on hold for a solid fifteen minutes for an international electronics company. Their caller experience was a carefully crafted combination of shrieking tones and distorted ‘popular music’. This took me by complete surprise. Their products are beautiful and intuitive, their customer service is normally genius and their stores are spacious and stunning like their products. But gee wizz, do they really drop the ball when it comes to the telephone!

If you’ve worked hard to build a great reputation and rapport with your customers, don’t let it be tarnished by a bad experience that is so easily avoided. In this instance the tech company in questions really should have taken control of their phone image.

Just as you wouldn’t allow someone in your company to be rude to your customers, don’t let your Caller Experience tarnish your reputation. Remember, it can take 20 years to earn a good reputation, but just two minutes on hold listening to high-pitched chimes to ruin it.

– Emily