Don’t “Wow”, Just Be Consistent

Do you like the “Wow effect” you get when receiving great customer service from a company? When you get more than expected and then you think, “Why doesn’t that happen all the time?”

I like outstanding service, too. But there is some bad news for marketing and sales people who count on the “Wow” factor: the experience must be repeatable and consistent throughout the whole process–not just once in a while.

For example:

• You shop online on a best-in-class website and order some nice products. You feel very motivated by the market approach of this provider: new, clear, to the point. Wow! But the items you receive are of poor quality or not special at all. What do you think?
• You show up at a restaurant and everything is perfect: the service, the friendliness, the food, the speed, everything is wonderful. Wow! You decide to go back a second time, but this time, the service is fair, the food is still good, and the speed could be better. There is no wow factor this time. Would you return to the restaurant again? Perhaps.
• Your organization creates a new ambitious vision. Most employees think, “Wow, we never had this, I feel motivated to achieve that vision.” But after some time goes by, some initiatives are started and some show results but others do not. Highly inspiring meetings turn into meetings with political agendas where half of the people do not show up any more. After six months, the “motivated geeks” become more frustrated than they would have been without the great vision that will never turn into reality.

What do all these examples reveal?

If you raise the bar and create the “wow” effect, then be ready and have the leadership and processes in place to keep the bar high. The worst thing that can happen is that expectations and results drop after a while. This causes people to feel frustrated and customers will turn away.

Note: It is much better to be consistently good than to be inconsistently brilliant.

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