The power of people
How many times this weekend did someone warn you not to buy gift cards this holiday season? I bet the warning came with mention of an email that had in it a crazy long list of store closings. Indeed, a million people are saying the same thing right now.
Never mind that the email in question is misleading at best and fear-mongering at worst. How quickly did it spread? How deep was its impact? How hard will it be for the stores in that email, unwitting participants in a national red flag, to undo the damage contained in that one email? How many people do you know that will give cash instead of credit this season?
Bad news travels fast, even when it shouldn’t. Companies today must work twice as hard as they once did to monitor, repair and prevent the spread of misinformation. One angry customer can affect a million potential shoppers (much as one happy customer can reach a million readers too, only far more effectively).
Today’s consumer is carefully weighing options on every spending decision. Service and positivity will be more important than ever in earning trust and repeat business.