Four years ago, I remodeled my kitchen. OK, according to my ex husband, HE remodeled my kitchen. But I’m the one who designed it, researched it, carefully sought out the cabinet maker and appliances and fixtures and wallpaper and…you get the picture.
I was so excited to buy a big, fancy range. I love to cook, and had my heart set on a Viking range with six burners. It’s black with stainless steel trim and it looks fabulous in the kitchen. It’s usually the second thing people comment on when they walk in the room the first time. (The first comment is usually, “I love your kitchen!”)
It was a splurge, I admit, the second most expensive part of the remodel. But that range has been a piece of crap. I had to have a repair person out right after we installed it, and four more times since then. Each visit costs me at least $250. In four years, I’ve paid a quarter of the price of that range all over again. I could have bought a good quality Kenmore for what I’ve paid in repairs.
And despite the price of the range, I never heard boo from Viking. No follow up to find out how I liked it, to make sure it was working correctly. Viking took my money and disappeared. Until this week.
Out of the blue I get a letter from them. Looking at the envelope I’m thinking it’s a recall notice of some kind, that all the ranges made when mine was built must have flaws that make them so prone to breaking down. Uh, no. It’s a letter selling me mixers and toasters. It starts with:
“As an owner of a Viking major appliance, you know the style and performance it brings to your kitchen.”
That makes me laugh. Style, yes. Performance, no. Not when half of your cookies burn while the other half are doughy because one side of the oven is hotter than the other! Not when one of your burners’ starter clicks and clicks and clicks when you’re using the burner in front of it!
But Viking is clueless about how unhappy I am with their product because they never asked! They just took my money, went away, and now show up again because they want more of my money.
If this were a dating situation, what would it look like? Probably a man taking a woman out for an expensive dinner and being clueless that the woman is miserable the whole time (for reasons I’ll let you imagine, they could be anything). So the man drops her off at the end of the evening, and drives off thinking all went well while she’s emailing her girlfriends to tell them how awful it was.
Then four months later, he calls her to suggest they get a drink. He’s clueless, she’s amazed that he didn’t ever get in touch with her before this.
What brought this about? Complete lack of communication. The man never asked the woman for her input or feedback. He just assumed that all was fine because he got what he wanted.
Marketers do the same thing. We convince customers to buy our products or services, then we take their money and run, and never ask if they were happy with what they got.
If marketing is like dating, I say this is a case of being respectful: Viking should have followed up to find out if I was happy with the range. The man should have followed up with the woman soon after the date.
OK, that’s enough preaching for a Friday. Have a great weekend!! And be respectful to your customers! Remember, marketing happens before, during and after the sale!
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