Second Chances

Have you ever had a bad experience at a business?  Did you go back to give them a second chance?

One of the stories I’ve used to share as an example of why businesses need to be social and how to reply to upset customers is based on a personal experience.  I did not have a good experience, it was so bad I almost never came back to that location.  My experience was like this: 

I arrived at the closest, lets just call it, “Smoothie Juice” early one morning to order a drink for my boss, his wife and myself.  Three simple smoothies.  There was no one else in front of me, in fact two customers received their smoothies in the middle of my order.  From the moment I finished my order to the time I received my three smoothies it took 30 minutes.  I was upset.

What really upset me was the fact that these workers were splashing each other with water instead of making my smoothies.  Once I received them the smoothies were so bad they had to remake them.  The only reason they stopped playing was because I asked them how much longer it would be.  I received no response, just an “oh crap” look on their faces.

I began posting about this experience, since I saw no manager, while I was waiting for my drinks and continued as I got into my car.  I was hoping for a response from “Smoothie Juice,” but instead I got silence.

I said I would never return to this location again, but if that was the case then I would not be writing about second chances.  I did go back to that location, about 6 months later, because a friend was talking about a new manager who made it a point to remember his name every time he walked in.  I thought this was interesting and decided to give them a second chance.  My experience was much better, but I will always remember my first bad experience and how I never received a response.

This story addresses two things:

1.  The importance of a social presence.

2.  The importance of responding to negative and positive feedback.

In this case, “Smoothie Juice” had a social presence but did not manage it well because they posted maybe once a month and never replied to anyone.  This is not what a social presence should be.

What would I have done differently if I was “Smoothie Juice”....

I would have replied instantly with an apology and asked what store this was taking place at.  I also would have followed up by offering a free smoothie to keep things on a positive note.  It is the simple things we do that make the greatest impact.  Don’t over think it, just respond in a way you would want a business to respond to you.

Remember, we do not post on social networks for ourselves, we post for our audience.  The next time you write a post, think like this... it’s not for you, it’s for them.