Every business confronts defining moments – those moments when something that was promised to a valued customer goes wrong.
Whether it’s a defective product, missed deadline, or service failure, these moments reveal your company’s true character – what your business truly values.
Small companies often excel at handling these situations through personal attention and care. Their promises to customers are genuine commitments that build trust and fuel growth.
But as a business grows, so does its awareness of risk – there’s more to lose. Policies, and then bureaucracies, are created to promote efficiency, ensure consistency, and manage risk, protecting what has been earned. While well-intentioned, the irony is that such bureaucratic barriers can impede genuine customer care by removing human judgment and empathy from the equation, prioritizing protection over serving the customer.
What prevails in your company’s defining moments?
- When customer problems arise, does your first instinct focus on helping the customer or protecting the business?
- Do your policies empower employees to properly resolve customer issues?
- How do your responses to problems reflect your company’s values?
A growing business may inadvertently drift from personal, relationship-based problem-solving to more systematized, policy-driven responses. But the best solutions balance customer care with business needs.
Companies that truly understand their long-term interests recognize that genuine customer care is itself a form of risk management. A customer who feels valued and well-treated during a crisis often becomes more loyal than one who never experienced a problem at all.
How does your business respond in your defining moments?