Service Truths
Timeless principles of successful service delivery.
I have been busy working on my book recently. It is a graphic novel about design leaders that aims to uncover the human behind the leader. It exposes the reality of the journeys of these professionals, ups and downs, and contextual experiences. I have interviewed many leaders for it, one of which is Courtney Martyn at Xero. Courtney is a great design leader who has managed to achieve impressive results in her organisation. In her interview, she shared how quickly after the first large mapping exercise of all the services Xero offers to their varied customers, she and her team managed to crystallise a couple of service truths:
“If you want to change one thing in the service, on average six other things will have to change with it.” Making a single change in a complex system usually has a ripple effect.
“It takes between 6 and 11 teams internally to make a change to something within the service.” Making a substantial change to a service becomes a gateway to show the interdependence of different teams within an organisation.
It’s a domino effect. Services are interrelated systems; moving one part will automatically affect other parts of the service, involving various teams across the organisation. Let me give you an example.
Imagine you work for a large e-commerce company, and you decide to change the payment gateway provider you use for processing customer transactions. This change might seem straightforward, but it can have a cascading effect on various aspects of your service, and several other things may need to change:
Integration: The new payment gateway may have a different API and data structure, so you'll need to rewrite the code responsible for integrating the platform with the payment gateway.
User Interface: You might need to update the user interface to accommodate the new payment provider's features, branding, or workflows.
Security: The security protocols and compliance requirements may differ between payment gateway providers, necessitating a revision of your security measures to meet the new standards.
Reporting and Analytics: Your reporting and analytics tools might require adjustments to capture and analyse data related to the new payment provider. You'll need to modify dashboards and reports accordingly.
Customer Support and Training: Your customer support team will need training on the new payment gateway, and your documentation may need updates to help users understand the changes.
Legal and Compliance: Changing payment providers may have legal implications, especially if you're dealing with different contractual agreements, terms of service, or data handling practices. Legal documents may need to be reviewed and updated.
In this scenario, changing the payment gateway involves the initial change in the service, but it triggers at least six other changes in various aspects of your service. These changes involve an array of different teams, from UX to HR to legal, for example.
This conversation reminded me about an exchange I had during my Livework days with Ben Reason regarding service truths that we started to see emerging. We identified three common ones.
The beginning of a service sets the tone for everything else.
That’s where expectations are set, and where customers decide whether they can trust you or not. When purchasing something, customers are usually transferred between sales and operations, and in that transfer, many things can go wrong. Designing the beginning of becoming a customer correctly makes the difference between setting up a customer for success or failure later on in the service experience. A typical example is one from the telecom industry.
A customer decides to switch to a new telecom provider and contacts the sales department. During this phase, the sales representative is polite, knowledgeable, and eager to win the customer's business. They explain the available plans, services, and offer a competitive deal. The customer is promised a seamless transition with no service interruptions, better network coverage, and substantial cost savings. Let’s be honest, that sales rep will say anything to close the deal.
After agreeing to the new plan, the customer is transferred from the sales department to the operations or customer service department to initiate the service transition. This is where the customer provides personal information, schedules an installation or activation date, and confirms the details of their plan.
In the transition to the operations department, several issues arise. Information provided by the sales representative has not been accurately conveyed to the operations team. They use different IT systems, and many contextual details are lost in the transfer. The transition process encounters delays due to internal processes or technical issues, which frustrates the customer who was initially promised a quick and smooth transition. Finally, the bill turns out to be way higher than expected because a few conditions were too tiny to read. The result is eroded trust and a customer that will switch at the first opportunity.
From a customer perspective, a perfect start means a transparent and well-instructed onboarding experience. Customers want to be informed, engaged, and feel in control. From the moment of purchase intent to the setup and use of the service, the initial experience influences how customers view the organisation and determines their future relationship with it.
You will mess up the service at one point, and that’s okay.
Incidents are fine; customers can be very understanding. The key isn't trying to avoid incidents at all costs but to design a great service recovery when they happen. Good service recovery wins hands down over no incidents at all.
It’s a known phenomenon called the "service recovery paradox." Customers who experience a service failure but receive a prompt and effective recovery are often more satisfied and loyal than those who never experience a service failure at all. When a company effectively addresses a service failure, it can demonstrate its commitment to customer service, responsiveness, and problem-solving skills. In this context, customers view the company more favourably, and their loyalty is reinforced.
Certain industries even use the service recovery paradox to their advantage by engineering a service failure and then fixing it by providing a service that goes beyond customer expectations. The result is often a loyal customer who believes the company cares about their satisfaction.
The magic of the service recovery paradox lies in human psychology. We are wired to appreciate when our problems are acknowledged and resolved with a sense of urgency and empathy. When a service incident occurs, it’s not just the resolution that matters but the manner in which it’s handled. Companies that excel in service recovery follow a few golden rules: they apologise sincerely, take ownership of the issue, and make things right—often going the extra mile to exceed customer expectations. This approach transforms a potentially negative experience into a positive one, engendering a deeper level of trust between the customer and the company.
While service incidents are inevitable, they can be turned into opportunities to strengthen customer relationships. By approaching service recovery strategically, with empathy and efficiency, businesses can not only mitigate the damage done by service failures but also enhance their reputation and customer loyalty.
The one thing people will remember about your service is how it ended.
Joe Macleod wrote an entire book about it, titled "Ends." Joe argues that society tends to focus on beginnings and overlooks the importance of how things end.
Focusing on designing the right ending for your service has many benefits. People tend to remember how you treated them once they've left, above everything else that occurred during the service provision. So, you can design a fantastic service experience, but if you don’t get the ending right, that’s what people will remember about working with you.
“Everything ends. Yet we overlook it. For most consumers it is a significant part of the consumer experience. It locks down memory. It is psychologically one of the most impactful periods. But most businesses don’t see it that way. Happy to abandon their consumers at the end.” Joe Macleod
Joe explains how designing the right ending has many business advantages, among which are consumer satisfaction, sustainability, innovation, and even increased sales.
A seamless and friendly account cancellation process, an empathetic approach towards a customer's changing circumstances, or a graceful handling of service termination can all contribute to a positive last impression. Businesses that master the art of service endings can turn what seems like an end into a new beginning. Customers who depart on good terms are more likely to return when their needs change, act as brand ambassadors, and generate organic, positive word-of-mouth.
What are your stories of service truths? I’d love to read them in the comments, especially if you have different truths than mine!
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Hey, this article is pure gold! Loved it. You write with such a clarity!
Thank you, Marizia, for this great article and sharing your findings with broader audience! The service truth I'm currently uncovering is that even in a very large organisation producing medical devices, any internal pain point, systemic issue or inefficiency in the current process execution has a direct negative impact on customers and their end users (patients). In this case, it results not only in a bad experience and loss of trust but also in risks to safety and quality. No matter how far those teams are from customer-facing roles or product design and manufacturing, the same ripple effect occurs.