How to Lose a (Lot of) Customer(s) in 3 Easy Steps, or Verizon Snubs IBM

We recently heard from a retired IBM executive about a recent experience he had attempting to get a discount from Verizon Wireless in regards to their “Retired IBM Employees” program.

It was sad, funny, preposterous and fairly hopeless all at once and serves as a reminder of all that goes wrong where best-laid-plans get put into practice.

I had a nice surprise when I came across an article from Terrapinn's Total Customer Blog - which focuses on 'Strategy, innovation and ROI for marketing and CRM professionals'. It included a listing of five customer-focused blogs to follow, including Flooring The Consumer! 

In his book The Apple Experience: Secrets to Building Insanely Great Customer Loyalty, Carmine Gallo refers to Apple's Five Steps of Service.

More specifically,

Approach customers with a personalized, warm welcome.

Probe politely to understand all the customer's needs.

Present a solution for the customer to take home today.

During BRITE '12, Columbia Business School Professor Bernd Schmitt introduced "Happy Customers Everywhere", his latest book. He provocatively asked whether happiness is a function of simply removing pain points from the customer experience, or is there more?