"The customer is god", only when or before the customer pays?

In business, we often talk about "The customer is god". Lately, I realized that there is a bit of hypocrisy, because it's only true when the customer pays or before the customer pays.

Here are some observations:

When you dial a company and want to talk to customer support, you often hear: "For sales, press 1". Have you ever heard: "For customer support, press 1"? You'd lucky if there is an option for support.

You most likely get to talk to a live SALES person soon after pressing 1, how ofter you get to talk to a live support person without listening to other options (e.g. contact /support on the web, check the knowledge base)?



There are many EDI document types defining sales transactions in supply chain as seen here, but none of address customer support? Where is the support chain and support chain automation?

It appears to me that customer support and service is grossly overlooked in the past. That will cost organizations dearly in this social media age, when customers are gaining more and more access and leverage in the relationship with vendors.

Hubcase pioneers SUPPORT Chain, it automates issue escalation and interaction between you and your vendors or partners, and also offers free SaaS Service Desk.


Ray Zhu
Founder, Hubcase
ray.zhu@hubcase.com
http://www.hubcase.com/