This article isn’t about Star Trek. No, no…this article is about a frontier that many consumers have visited before. Honestly, it’s more a busy New York City intersection than a wild frontier given how common it is. What is it?
Bad service.
Crummy experiences plague every industry, and the financial services industry is no exception. But you need to be the exception. You must have a standout bank or credit union consumer experience program in a sea of “meh” service.
And that’s where today’s cautionary tale enters the picture. On The Mark Strategies Account Executive Colleen Cormier recently canceled her Frontier Internet service…and boy was it an awful odyssey for her.
Let’s walk through what happened (and what you can learn from it).
Lightyears Away from Fast Service
Colleen’s initial call to cancel her account mostly goes well. But rather than cancel her account, Frontier signs her up for phone service and sends a link to confirm the order. She spends an additional two and a half hours resolving the phone service error and canceling her account – an adventure that took her through text, website chat and call center pit stops.
The Lesson: Time is valuable, and simplicity is invaluable. Consumers are willing to spend time on important things but are intolerant of wasting it on fruitless tedium. And regardless of how much time something takes…make it easy. The less mental calories someone expends on your service experience, the better.
Consistently Inconsistent
During her lengthy cancellation process, Frontier tells Colleen she can cancel a service via online chat. But later, the Frontier representative says Colleen can only do it by phone. Which was correct? It’s still a mystery. What’s not a mystery? The frustration it caused.
The Lesson: Inconsistency is the most consistent bank and credit union consumer experience conundrum. People get different answers at different branches, from different call center representatives and from the website. It’s infuriating to hear someone else was wrong and now you have extra work to do. Develop service standards and zealously enforce them down all avenues.
Wait and See People Close Accounts
Towards the end of Colleen’s experience, Frontier directs her to an “account saver.” This employee offers special deals in a last-ditch effort to stop the customer from leaving. He tells Colleen she has “slow” internet and should have called for an upgrade. Colleen asks him why it is her responsibility to know that. Shouldn’t Frontier’s marketing department communicate about the upgrade opportunity?
The Lesson: Be proactive, not reactive. Don’t wait for members or customers to close accounts. Recommend the next best thing to them and remain attentive to their needs. You have the chance to help consumers by simply talking about good account, loan or payment options. Remember: it’s not a consumer’s responsibility to know what you offer…it’s yours to tell them.
Strange New Worlds
Does excellent service feel worlds away right now? It’s time for a lightspeed jump into relevance if you want to perform well in this market. Establish consistent standards, coach your managers and tie it all to your brand. Book a free consultation with On The Mark Strategies, and let’s get started.
