Treat me like a valued customer and I’ll stick around…
Customer loyalty is really important in today’s world. There have been numerous studies done on the cost to source new customers versus the cost to keep the ones you have, and the results are ALWAYS that keeping customers is easier and more profitable. That makes sense, so why is it so difficult to do?
There is a reason I (and thus my family) have been a member customer of AAA for over eighteen years. Way back when, we were brought to the company by a family friend who was an agent in Porterville California. Duane was a guy we went to Church with, that my wife knew since birth, and he took care of us as family. It’s easy, or easier, when you are a friend or family member, but we left California shortly after that and have lived in four or five places since. Oddly enough, every interaction except one over eighteen years has been a good one. The one that wasn’t was more about a phone agent who didn’t know the rules in the state we were in, as she was in another one. The service after we got that runaround was timely, well mannered and accurate, as expected.
Whenever I call, I am thanked for my years of being a customer. I think that’s cool, and more so because, well, I write things like this about serving customers, and IT MATTERS to me as a customer. I like that they recognize I’ve stuck with them. Hopefully my rates reflect that, too. I’ve never checked… hmmmm.
A few weeks ago, my eldest child was involved in a mutual backing parking lot kiss. He was, a bit freaked out, as every driver in their first (however minor) fender bender is. He called and was doing everything he should have, and to make matters worse, the other driver just left, not wanting to exchange the pertinent information (which, by the way, is technically hit-and-run in Texas… but that’s another story.)
His little endeavor has exposed me to another insurance company – I won’t mention any names, but there’s this little green gecko that is on TV… Well, that company’s adjustor and agent have been flat out rude, in writing and in person. Amazingly so. Suffice it to say I will never entertain their services if I ever am in the market for insurance. Ever.
Back to AAA. The agents handling the claim were really, really nice and personable, and thankfully, when they talked to my son, were also extremely professional and not condemning or condescending. Thanks for that, Laura Hill and Justin Doby. I appreciate both of you. Your tact and reassurances are appreciated. Laura and Justin were the voice of AAA for us in this last interaction.
Think about it. The insurance business is all about service interactions. Seriously. Insurance is basically solely based on service interaction.
That leads me to the “face” of the insurance company – no, not the salesperson, although they are part of it. Sales is one thing – service is another and embodied the person who you see and shake hands with when you actually NEED the insurance. This interaction is where the rubber meets the road. This face is usually the person we know as “the Adjustor.”
Last year we had a major hail storm like nowhere we’ve ever lived (Welcome to Texas!) Our roof, gutters, and various other house parts got pummeled. Seriously obliterated. A guy named Bruce Lott was our adjustor for that. He made that interaction. His reassurances and ease of doing business made that endeavor tolerable. Thanks Bruce. I should have written before now, but seriously, Thank you. I had some damage to my car then as well, but the interaction with the body shop was a whole different experience.
Why did I not write about AAA before? Well, you know how it goes. There are some things you mean to write about, but you just need someone to push you over the edge to do it.
The face of the insurance company for the last little fender bender was a guy named Jeff Ervin. He is the one who pushed me over the edge. He’s the Adjustor for autos in our area. His business card doesn’t say adjustor, I guess they’re called Material Damage Appraisers now. Whatever. Regardless, Jeff is the most recent face of AAA when I needed my auto insurance.
Jeff scoped the damage to the bumper of our car and chatted with my son and wife. He put my son at ease, and is all about making the customer’s experience a good one. Dealing with a messed up car is stressful. He eased that stress for my son. That’s huge “Customer Service Points” for me, but that was a few weeks ago. I still hadn’t written this, although I had thought about it.
It took one more push to get me writing.
I talked to Jeff again this morning as he assessed the hail damage to my little commuter car. Yeah, we had another storm this past spring. Oddly, on the exact same date as the one that got our home a year earlier. (Note to self: March 25th, 2010, be ready for hail in central Texas. BIG hail.)
The interaction this time started via me ignoring Jeff on my phone (not really) and him following up via email to set up the appointment. Email works for me. In short order we had an appointment. Quick, easy and cordial. We set the time last night, and he was there this morning. On time. We had said between 830 and 9am, and it was like 835 when my doorbell rang. Punctual is good. I like punctual. Showing up on time or providing a service when you say you will is a service interaction in itself.
Fifteen minutes later (max) he had the info he needed, and we chatted about how I would get the damage repaired, and he helped me out by explaining some differences in the way Texas works than the other states we’ve each lived in. Help me navigate these waters of getting my car fixed and make a personal connection. Now I’m sold. That, and I am confident that I’ll be able to take care of this. He told me exactly what to expect, set my expectations for the rest of this service interaction and was off to his next appointment. Personable, personal, friendly, efficient and setting of reasonable expectations. He did it all. So far, this is a textbook good example of a successful service interaction, and I am confident it will end up as one. Thanks Jeff.
So the bottom line? What can we learn here? AAA treats me like a valued customer, and valuable human being. A customer for eighteen years? Yeah, because they treat me like they value my business. I’m not looking to change. What if you could keep customers for eighteen years? How would that affect your business? What could you do to KEEP people happy with your services? Start by letting your employees treat customers like human beings, and tear down anything – attitudes, rules, processes, and policies that inhibit such behavior. That might be a good start.
Tags: AAA, Auto Club, customer service, service, Service Experiences
One Response to “Treat me like a valued customer and I’ll stick around…”
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July 17th, 2009 at 1:22 pm
I have to add – The process for this hail claim that Jeff was the adjustor on was so smooth on the other end of the line I almost forgot… Until she called me yesterday to confirm it was a done deal… Thanks also to Kimberly Raish, my claim rep on this one – another great example of AAA service in action.