When The Shit Hits The Fan (Part II)
In part 1, I outlined how a club might benefit from thinking of a fan in the way leading service brands think of customers; by putting them first and building the experience around them.
There are some lessons that can be taken from the world outside of football.
Organisations work hard to identify what their customers want, and how they can deliver it better than their competitors.
Those brands often get it right because they have to work harder. I saw this in my previous life, where I was lucky enough to study for part of my MBA in the United States and see Disney, amongst other places, close up.
I’m not suggesting any club tries to turn their matchday experience into that of a theme park, but there are ways that this increased focus can be replicated by using some of the methods that these leading organisations use to win and/or retain new customers.
Here’s five right off the top of my head:
Dealing with problems
Great companies have problems too, but they just put things right. I had an issue once when trying to sort out an online glitch with Disney ahead of visiting one of their parks. When I arrived an hour later, they took us to one side, apologised and did everything they could to make up for it. And then delivered on it! I was instantly converted from someone who might be negative into their best customer in an instant.
Contact
It shouldn’t be down to me to make the running. A great organisation will be on the front foot, making sure I am fully aware of everything from offers to opening times, changes and anything else that might remove any hassle or stress. This is done by anticipating the users needs, and giving it to them before they ask. But they are also doing it because they want to, not because the customer asks them to.
Proactivity
People at good companies are reactive, people at great ones are proactive. It’s literally that simple. If you look lost, or upset, or in need of any help and you’ll be immediately approached by staff who are trained to spot that kind of thing and help without being prompted. It’s a skill, and it can be learned, and one worth instilling as a proactive person will always stand out from the crowd and make a massive difference.
Feedback
The old chestnut, but a number of clubs still don’t seek feedback from fans or if they do, it’s a tick box exercise. Great organisations not only ask for feedback, they also make it easy for customers to give it and, most importantly, close the loop by telling them what they did as a result of it.
The Extra Mile
There is always a point in any interaction where you can say ‘I’ve done enough.’ But a great company has people who are looking for ways to go that little bit further. I – back in my financial services days – dealt with a customer who’d had some horrendous issues with their mortgage. They were finally sorted, and happy with the outcome. I’d done enough, but they had mentioned during my long apology call that they were Wolves fans. The company had an executive box at Molineux. For me, it took a minute to send an email and request hospitality tickets that might have gone otherwise unused. For the customer it was a dream day out and turned them from a customer who’d had their complaint resolved, to one who was now our biggest fan. It doesn’t have to be on the back of a problem either. How can you go one step further to ensure the person you are dealing with has the best possible outcome?
All five examples work equally well for either customers and fans. But what I’d also say, from what I’ve seen, and after overseeing hundreds of assessment reports, is that all five of them are areas that most clubs still don’t do that well in.
And it’s why the majority of clubs are good, or very good, but not great.
Excrement Everywhere
Not that customer service is always delivered this well. In the UK, there’s evidence – at least anecdotally – that it’s possibly on the decline. I leave it alone for ten years and look what happens!
Earlier this week, I spent six hours on a live chat with EE. It was possibly the worst customer experience I’ve ever received. It wasn’t a shitshow - I’ve seen plenty of shitshows and this was on a whole new level. After more than 90 minutes, I was transferred to someone else who said to me ‘so, you looking to upgrade number XXXXX?’
I wasn’t, and I had explained what I wanted - several times - to his colleague but then had to explain it all over again.
And I’d really like to say that was the low point of the ‘call’. But it wasn’t. Far from it.
Which brings me full circle back to Wembley Stadium, where EE have their name plastered around the place, but where getting a decent signal is about as easy as finding a manager who can win us a World Cup.
Maybe, ten years from now, I’ll be in that lift again and I’ll be able to say that football clubs have not only caught up but have even gotten ahead when it comes to delivering great experiences.
Now wouldn’t that be something?
