“People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” – Theodore Roosevelt
Poor customer service. Nothing kills a good product or brand faster. Based on a poor experience, people will just spend their money elsewhere. Why invest in a brand that doesn’t want to invest in you?
Seems pretty self-explanatory when applied to everyday situations. So why the exception when it comes to the virtual event space? The simple answer is that there shouldn’t be any exceptions.
Let’s be honest – virtual event resources are a dime a dozen. And just because they’re selling something that caters to our newfound and not-going-anywhere-anytime-soon digital space, doesn’t mean you should be buying it.
So where, oh where, has the customer service gone? You’ve got questions and deserve answers, attention, and the gift of time. Heck… you’re paying for it after all!
As we continue to research and vet virtual event resource providers, the ones who are the shining stars paving the way for others, are actually the ones with the best customer service. Their product, in some instances, may not be ground breaking or earth shattering, but their attention to the customer and their needs sets them apart.
When you have those ‘oh shit’ moments … and trust us, in a virtual event space, there are a lot of those … the companies that are invested in your success are the ones you know you can count on.
The companies on the latter end – the ones who take your money and then are nowhere to be found after endless unanswered emails, phone calls, SOS messages – that’s not really a relationship you want to be in, is it?
Some general guidelines for what you, as the buyer/customer, should expect from a virtual event resource provider:
- easily accessible contact information
- support offered during your event
- access to a main point of contact or dedicated project lead leading up to your event
- quick response time
- forthcoming with any information you request
- proactively checking in with you at key milestones along your planning timeline
- actively sharing important software or platform updates that may affect your set up
- professional and respectful
- consider you their client rather than using the event as a business development opportunity with branding and messaging to attendees
To all of the great virtual event resource providers, you know who you are, keep up the great work!!!
– The Tycoons, XO