A note to my colleagues

Of pizzas, dosas and customer engagement

The other day, I was rather famished and dialled the Domino’s Happiness Hotline. I was pleasantly surprised when the call was automatically re-directed to the Indiranagar outlet from where I had last ordered my pizza. But I had to place several calls as nobody cared to respond at the outlet. Finally, I opted for the tried and tested Pizza Hut, where the service was excellent as usual.

I posted this experience on the Facebook home page of Domino’s and was impressed with the speed at which they responded. Within five minutes of my posting, Domino’s offered an apology, provided me with an e-mail ID and requested me to get in touch with the India office.

At the face of it, many might compliment Domino’s for their quick reply. But I would say they acted expeditiously but not judiciously. There was a reaction from the company but no action, which speaks volumes of its customer orientation.

So, what should have Domino’s done in the current situation? First, they should have conveyed my complaint to the India office themselves, instead of asking me to do so. And then they should have got back to me with a solution. For all you know, the problem might have been resolved by now, but I have no knowledge of it and hence I will never waste my time ordering a Pizza from Domino’s again.

At Zee Kannada too we receive several letters and e-mails from our viewers. Some viewers give us feedback about our programmes, some criticise us and many others write just to convey their appreciation.   The fact that viewers take time from their busy schedules to write to us shows that they genuinely care for us.

Thus, it is important that we take every letter seriously. We should not just react, but act. We should not only acknowledge the letters, but also inform the viewers about the action we have taken. Let us listen to our viewers, act on their suggestions and constantly engage them. This will build a band of loyal viewers.

A happy viewer may spread the word to just ten others, but an unhappy consumer will speak to a hundred people. Bad views like bad news, travels thick and fast.  And the day the viewer realises you are not listening to her, she will stop talking to you.

Imagine going to a restaurant and being served soggy masala dosa. You will not only stop going to the restaurant in the future, but will tell the whole world about it. Would you have reacted similarly if you were served a tasty dosa?  You would have hardly told a couple of your friends, or perhaps not. That is the power of a dis-satisfied customer.
Now imagine that you write a letter to the owner and he invites you to the hotel with your family, profusely apologises, serves you crispy masala dosas and does not bill you for it. From a bad customer, you immediately become a good customer. That is how you change an experience from bad to good—by listening, accepting and acting. React and act.

Howsoever big we may be, the viewer is bigger. We are happy only as long as she is happy. We exist in Zee only to serve her. And as long as we completely orient ourselves to our viewers, we have no Wednesdays to fear.