A Luggage Loser Breaks Its Big Promise
I recently returned home from a trip to Mexico City on a direct flight from a major airline. That airline forced me to pay to check my carry-on bag despite that bag meeting all the requirements of an acceptable international carry-on. Upon arriving at my home airport, I cleared customs with no wait and no issues and headed to the baggage claim to retrieve my checked carry-on. When I reached the baggage claim, I noticed that my travel companion's bag was sitting off to the side of the carousel alongside two other bags I didn't recognize. We watched the carousel complete a revolution or two without surfacing my bag, so I then approached an airline employee to inquire about my bag.
While chatting, my travel companion checked the app on her phone to see that both bags had reached the airport, but only hers made it to the carousel. The employee seemed confused by this, and he headed into a secure area, where he had a conversation that compelled him to instruct me to return home and file a lost luggage claim. That evening, we filed a claim. The next day, my companion called the airline to check the claim's status, making minor progress. For each of the next six days, she did the same until the airline indicated that we needed to file a claim for permanent loss of luggage. I spent the next two weeks cataloging items, searching for receipts, and pasting hyperlinks into a spreadsheet.
This obnoxious exercise left me thinking about "Big Promises," which I define here as implied contracts companies make with their customers. For example, as a business growth consultant, Marion Street Capital wants to deliver investment capital and/or incremental sales to its customers on time and within budget. When I purchase airline tickets, I expect the airline to deliver me safely to my destination alongside my luggage. Flights and luggage have certainly arrived late, but no airline has previously completely lost my luggage, especially after its software indicated that the luggage had arrived at the airport.
Most customers probably understand that almost no company can deliver on its "Big Promise" 100% of the time, especially when tail cases are concerned. Still, every customer should expect companies to issue major "mea culpa" when they fail. For example, MSC offers to continue working for its customers at no additional cash cost when projects extend past deadlines. If, for whatever reason, MSC cannot deliver a business consulting development outcome on time, it can at least control its ability to deliver on budget! I expected this airline to generously offer cash compensation for my lost luggage and its contents. Instead, it treated me to layers of bureaucracy, forcing me to spend my cash first while seeking uncertain retribution later. Thus, it seems fair to say that MSC and other companies that operate with "customer first" philosophies aspire to be companies meeting at least a threshold of "good."
Meanwhile, this airline sent me a clear message: "We know we are a terrible company, so we aren't even going to try to be good. Our employees don't care about your customer experience; they don't care whether you fly us again; they don't care if you broadcast to the world that we are a terrible company, and they don't care if they eventually wind up unemployed because we treated our customers so poorly."
What is your company's "Big Promise," and what does it do when it can't deliver on that promise? How do you ensure that your response to setbacks reinforces trust and strengthens customer relationships? And on the flip side, what is the most significant violation of a company's Big Promise you’ve experienced, and how did it shape your perception of their brand?
These questions are at the heart of building resilient businesses and maintaining loyal customers.
Share your thoughts with us, and if you're ready to align your company with customer-first strategies focused on business growth, explore our RevOps services to learn how our business consulting development experts can help.