Bulletin: Research Demos Common Sense

“Because I say so” is a line guaranteed to get you in trouble as a parent. It means you’ve reached the end of your rope in terms of logic and are resorting to the tried and true tactic of bullying. Having been there myself, I’m not criticizing – I’m just saying…

The reason I bring this up is that it sometimes we all use that line with respect to stuff we just know. It’s true because we say so but also because we just know.  You just know Bruce is going to put on a good show (he did!). You just know no matter what one political party does the other one will criticize them (boring). And you just know that good customers get more angry with you when you screw up than do casual customers. Except today there’s some research that says so too.

There’s a brief article in the Times today which states

A study soon to be published in the Journal of Consumer Research studies the psychology of consumer revenge. In one experiment, the researchers spent eight weeks observing 172 angry consumers who posted complaints at Ripoff Report and ConsumerAffairs.com. Most customers reported over time that their desire for revenge against the companies decreased. But for previously loyal customers, the desire for revenge was replaced with a strong desire to avoid the offending business in the future. Casual customers did not feel the same desire for avoidance.

But you knew that, right?  When some drunk in the subway yells bad stuff at you, do you hear it?  How about when it’s your best friend?  Common sense tells you that the more intimate we are with people or with businesses the greater the effect of a slight or a hurt.  The social tools we have today calm us down because we can do SOMETHING about mistreatment instead of just seethe.  We can hit back and hurt reputations (much better and longer lasting than physical harm) and then we can break off the relationship.  In the case of the casual customer, there’s nothing to break off.  In the case of the good customer, there is the lasting effect of lost business.

Many businesses think that as they grow and customers become “regulars” they can rely on built-up goodwill to see them through shoddy service.  Not so.  You’re not the wino in the subway any more – you’re their best friend.  So act like it!