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You Are Not Listening To Whispers

Started by andrewhyde · 7 months ago

“We are listening.”  is the startup mantra I hate.
Companies are really starting to catch on to engaging their customers through where their customers are talking (this being done with some great points by Jeremiah Owyang, Chris Brogan and Geoff Livingston). Chr ... Continue reading »

4 comments

  • Geoff Livingston

    10 months ago

    Listening only works if you act. How many times have you had some tell you they are sorry, then go and do the same thing again? The synergy between and individual and a company apologizing are similar. And amends is not an apology. It involves action.
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  • wyliemac

    10 months ago

    Great post Andrew. Geoff, there is nothing worse than talking to a CSR about a problem and them immediately apologizing for the inconvenience. And then proceed to do nothing to help you out. They fail to escalate the problem, or when you ask to talk to someone who can actually do something, they refuse to connect you because they don't have the authority to do so. Empty apologies annoy me.
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  • micah

    10 months ago

    While I agree with this post in its entireity (almost) - this sentence just rang strange for me "Treat them with respect, and sometimes the most respectful thing you can do is implement what they are asking for." That sounds like giving in to a single vocal detractor. It sounds like allowing people outside the company to drive company direction. The issue is that many companies are pulled in multiple directions by multiple forces. Its great to get feedback from users, but no matter what a company does, there will be a group of people that are supportive, and a group of people that are disappointed. Which one do you listen to? If you implement what the disappointed group wants (as suggested in the sentence above), then does the happy group become the disappointed group? Listening is fantastic. But its doesnt stop there. A company must CRITICALLY listen. A company must be able to separate the signal from the noise, and, while acknowledging all that they have been heard, only act on the feedback that truly drives a company's vision and mission forward. And, Geoff, you are correct, action is important. But what is more important is honesty and truth. I have gotten thousands of suggestions from customers, investors, and other interested parties, and while, again, I acknowledge listening to them, I indicate to each group what exactly we plan to implement, when that implementation may occur -- in essence setting proper expectations. If you tell an interested party that you are going to do something, then do it. If you are not going to do anything, tell them that too.
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  • John F Croston III

    9 months ago

    I was visiting with friends at the local coffee shop over the weekend and a friend of mine said "I used to get all upset about things to the customer service person and I shouldn't have, I was only killing the messenger." She noticed after a few years of trial and error, that if she was nice to them they were more willing to help her out with her problem. So now she starts by being nice to them and explaining her problem in the most calm and easy going manner as possible. Now she hardly ever has a problem with the customer service person and they do truly listen to her.
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