Buyer's Remorse...

"Did you notice the inside tailgate light is missing?", my uncle pointed out as I showed him my family's new minivan.

"You mean the light's burned out?" I asked.

"No it's missing. Looks like the factory forgot to put it in," he said pointing to a gapping hole in the inside tailgate.

A few days ago we bought a new minivan. Actually, it's new for us, but it's a "certified used car" from a "haggle-free" dealer (There's another marketing tip...)

So, I emailed my salesman about the problem. No response.

I called. He wasn't in. I left a message for him to call me back. No response.

Here's where I began to experience what marketers call Buyer's Remorse.

Wikipedia describes Buyer's Remorse as "an emotional condition whereby a person feels remorse or regret after a purchase. It is frequently associated with the purchase of higher value items such as property, cars, computers, jewelry, etc. The common condition is brought on by an internal sense of doubt that the correct decision has been made. With high-value items such as a property, this is exacerbated by the fear that one may have acted without full and complete information, for example, the property was not fully surveyed..."

I've studied Buyer's Remorse before. In a clinical setting it's easy to feel empathy for the buyer and to dismiss it as cognitive dissonance.

That is, until you are the person experiencing the remorse. Then there's no dismissing the reality of the overwhelming fear that you may made a bad decision.

My mind began to spin: What else could be wrong. What else had I failed to check? How many jokes was this salesman telling about me being a patsy?

Then I remembered, my contract had a 7-day return policy. I called the sales manager and explained my situation and that the salesman was unresponsive.

"Oh, he's been out for the last few days," the manager replied calmingly. "Actually on that model there's only one light. The other side is just a cover."

"Well my cover is missing!" I replied trying not to let my remorse show.

"I can order one and ship it right to your home," he responded. "Would that be acceptable?"

"Uh, sure," I responded relieved I didn't have to put up a fight.

"Is everything else working well?" he asked.

"Yeah it is," I replied.

"And remember if you have any other problems, you have a free powertrain warranty and roadside assistance for the next year," he said, soothing me.

I hung up the phone and wondered if I was overreacting. Maybe I really had got a good deal and these no-haggle salesmen were good guys.

What can you do to be sure your customers post-sales fears are calmed? What program can you put into place to build confidence and possibly get referral customers?

A few days after my call, an overnight package arrived at my door with the replacement cover. Free.

Of course, I knew I'd made the right decision all along.

- Phil Sasso