Good customer service can help you with loyalty even if your product is slightly worse than that of your rivals. Bad customer service can never do that. Even if you offer the number one product, even if your technology is 10 years ahead, even if your design is fantastic, if your customer service is bad it will be difficult to survive or to retain loyalty when a second entrant presents a similar product with better customer service.
Here is a seasonal example. Over the New Year’s holidays we spent some days in Bansko, Bulgaria. Bansko is a recently popular ski resort which has seen a boom in tourist numbers and demand for small studios and flats for sale. Wisely, they have a lot of new builds (all of them under strict architecture rules) and have invested heavily in the ski slopes and facilities. Their lifts are new and good quality as well as the buildings, cafes etc.
The only problem – which really exasperated us – was the bad customer service in every single place we went to apart from the hotel. Waiting 20 minutes in line for lift tickets – even though there were only 3 people in front of us – rude waiters, people in shops blanking you as if you did not exist, making a booking and then arriving to discover that someone else is where you were supposed to be etc.
Will we go back? Maybe in 3 or 4 years time just to check if they have learned. Other than that – and since we discovered we would really like to learn to ski – we would prefer a different country. Even Greece with its abysmal ski facilities in most resorts is preferable since their customer service tends to be better.
And here is the deal clincher: This is the experience of one single person. Maybe you’ve had a different experience. Maybe you’ve had a rotten time in Greece but a fantastic time in Bulgaria. So effectively this is just my experience and my opinion.
Crucially though, I have a blog. And if over time people comment agreeing with me then my post becomes more and more credible. How long does it take for interested tourists to find this – and similar posts?
Sophia hi,
you are so right about the poor services in Bansko. We went there for xmas holidays 2 years ago. It's so sad to read that they still haven't learned. We stayed in Villa Roka (a supposedly 4 star hotel) where the staff wasn't really welcome. The lift attendants were really slow and the queues were getting bigger everyday. We tried to spot some mexaha (Tavern) that only the locals were visiting in order to get the right food for the right price. No need to tell you about the hotel's menu… We just had a good time in the hotel's bar where you could taste really rare whiskeys for the right price.
Keep up the good work. I will be visiting…
Hi Sofia,
Very good post and nice blog.
I do a specialist Bansko Blog currently being redesigned but you'll find it on http://www.banskoacccommodation.blogspot.comthere youll see over 50 areticles I've written on Bansko and already, thanksfully, gets around 100 visitors a day!
You'll see i am running a campaign against rip-off (or rather poor customer service and cheating) Bansko! Subscibers get a report (well will do when its updated in a few days)
Actually its very interesting reading people's experiences as they have the same theme… poor customer service being the most consistent but also many many instances of overcharging.
But here's the thing.
Whilst you cant doing much about grumpy lift attendants (ans they are not all bad) you can avoid the places with poor service. I talk about the "black sea sharks" who are doing a fine job of putting people off.
But… the interesting thing Bansko is really good if you know where to go and when. This is not perfect as there are off-days everywhere but a consensus is developing very quickly for the season.
And yes you are right, the internet is driving this knowledge and , with luck, only the good will survive.
I am looking for guest bloggers, and i'm happy to reciprocate of course, so do contact me or comment on mine if you wish.
Regards,
Lance Nelson
Helena's tip is one in my new guide on getting the best out of Bansko , and not getting ripped off, if in doubt ask a local.
however in my guide, now free for all subscribers, i have named and shamed places for poor quality and high prices.
BUT the good news there are loads of new places – many offering a much improved customer experience. Try The Crown Pub or The Friendy Bar as just two examples. There are now bg (and some foreigners) who understand how to satisfy clients.. a smile, good service and fair price. actually we all pay more if we get a smile and genuine good service and there are places beginning to realise this.
So its not all bad.
But it does need visitors to ignore all mehana/restaurant touts. This practice degrades the place and makes what should be a very pleasant stroll up and down Pirin street into a chore.
although, possibly somewhat perversely, assuming i'm not paying much for a coffee – i do like the totally bored, non smiling, chain smoking look of some of the waitresses. In the same way an abusive Chinese waiter can be fun. But only occaisionally!
Of course you're not going crazy. Greeks are more and more becoming citizens of the world and can now easily compare. I will go back…it's cheaper than Austria and with Lance's help I'll hope to get the desired customer service!
you have my permission to use the slogan
will check your blog next time i'm visiting! thanx!:)
Lance, it's good to know that you work for Bansko and trying to make things better. Don't get me wrong, it's a lovely place and it has much that the visitors will appreciate.
Helena, I'm glad I am not going crazy and someone had a similar experience to mine. However, it's such a shame because Bansko is genuinely a lovely place with real quality skiing facilities. If only they got more organised on the customer services front.