Unless it was a carefully orchestrated leak for some reason known only to a few, the Trump Administration group chat inclusion of Atlantic Editor Jeffrey Goldberg about Houthi military strikes was an egregious example of somebody not paying attention.
LISTEN
When inattention happens in customer service interactions, it’s annoying and damages company reputations.
When the “customers” are the American people—especially soldiers whose lives could be endangered—inattention becomes a “customer service catastrophe” of the first magnitude.
Inattention in corporate America is growing by leaps and bounds. As uncaring or under-equipped companies try to do more with less time, mistakes caused by inattention confound customers everywhere you look. Inattention can manifest itself in many customer-service-damaging ways, including providing inaccurate, incomplete, or misleading information to customers. It can be deliberate, such as the myriad deflections of truth propagated by the Trump Administration everywhere (think corporate brand misrepresentation), or unintentional—due instead to customer service specialists not keeping their eyes on the ball.
According to a Zendesk.com blogpost, “If your customer support is not up to par, it can spell bad news for your brand. When customers have a negative service experience, they’re often quick to voice their complaints on social media. The message is clear: You can’t afford to ignore these annoyances in today’s digitally connected world.”
Intention vs. Inattention
While US voters (a/k/a “the customers”) aren’t in an immediate position to say “You’re fired” TV show Apprentice-style to Trump and his minions” (a/k/a “the company”), most US consumers are in a position to vote with their pocketbooks when it comes to companies they feel have their backs—or not.
This where company intention to serve by paying attention to and valuing customers can help build loyalty and longevity, while inattention to customer needs and wants will help drive them to competitors that will pay attention!
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Mark Lusky Communications helps companies that honor customers, workers, communities, the environment, and stakeholder governance tell their story to the world. Interested? Let’s talk.
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