This morning, I called my local phone company to confirm details on my new contract. The representative assured me everything was OK. Then she jumped into a sales pitch for an add-on service.
I stopped her mid-sentence.
"I very busy," I said "I'm happy with my service. Don't change my mind."
Yesterday, at the bank the commercial teller told me about their new credit card offer.
"That's interesting..." I said, feigning interest.
Then, instead of handing me an application, she actually began filling it out.
"Whoa!" I said. "I said 'that's interesting,' not 'sign me up'!"
Ending a customer service interaction with a sales pitch is all too common today. But it's gone from suggestive selling to downright pushy. And that can breed resentment.
Remember, today's customer's are the same ones that created the firestorm for Bank of America and Netflix. Customers are demanding more of business than sales pitches: they want authenticity and integrity.
A better approach than being pushy: hand the customer a flyer, offer to email them the information, or ask if you can mail them a brochure.
Are you nudging customers to buy -- or shoving them?
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