Will Customers Miss You If They Leave?
Let’s face it, some customers are going to quit your brand. It happens. But will they miss you?
I’ve quit brands over the past few years and some I went back to and some I didn’t. I find myself falling into three categories after leaving; remorse, indifference, and elation .
Remorse
Bose
I bought a pair of Bose QC35 noise cancelling headphones this past year and they cost more than I ever thought I would spend on headphones. About 6 months later, I went to my friends cabin and long story short; they’re gone. Will I spend an exorbitant on headphones twice in one year? You bet. I doubt that the quality is 35 times better than the earbuds I used to use but the way they make me feel is definitely worth it. The way they feel, block out sound, and the quality is incomparable. Bose built a product that i feel lost without. Now I’m addicted.
Audible
Audible has provided an unsurpassed experience since I started my subscription over 6 years ago. Every interaction has been pleasant and their marketing messages and useful and aligned across channels. One thing that I love about them (that will seem contradictory) is that they make it incredibly easy to quit and re-subscribe. Once in a while I pause my subscription until I get caught up on the books I’ve already bought, but I always go back. They don’t even have competitors in the audiobook space. There only competition for me is from other audio sources such as Google Music and podcasts.
These brands get the advantage of premium pricing.
Indifference
There are a whole bunch of brands that would fit in this category such as Samsung, Apple, Netflix, Chevrolet etc. They had ok products, but it was nothing I couldn’t live without. With the right offer, they could probably win me back but I don’t miss them.
These brands will win on pricing but I will always be looking to replace.
Elation
Dish Network / Charter
Quitting paid tv has been much easier than I thought it would be. I thought I would miss 200+ channels but the truth is, I’m glad we got rid of it. It was like quitting any nasty habit. There is no price point that they could win my business back.
The common theme of the brands I felt remorse about leaving is they went beyond great products and services and created an experience that actually made me feel better about myself and confident in doing business with them.
