We can all agree that being communicative in your business is important.
Keeping your clients and customers updated during your process makes them feel important. It lets them know they’re top of mind and that you’re trying to serve them in the best way possible.
But what happens when that well-intentioned communication goes wrong? 🤔
I think airlines are notorious for bad communication… This one particular airline took the cake for me in a recent experience.
I had a flight to Miami leaving at 11:30am.
At around 9am I received an email saying the flight was delayed until 2:15pm.
“But please show up at your originally scheduled time as we’re working on minimizing the delay…”
Ok, so you want me to wait at the airport for 4 hours for a flight that may revert to its original time… like that’s ever happened! 🙄 But sure…
20 minutes later, as I’m getting ready to leave, I get another email.
“Your flight has been delayed to 3pm, but please still come in at your original scheduled time.”
Ok, so now it’s going to be 5 hours at the airport for a flight that keeps getting pushed back… Hmm. Coming in at my original time seems like a worse and worse gamble…
20 minutes later, another email…
“Your flight has been delayed. Your new departure time is 3:30pm.”
Ok, no more “come in at the original time” BS. Finally, clarity. 🙌
But then, no more than 5 minutes later, another email comes in… and this one is where the communication went off the rails for me…
“Good News! We’ve worked hard and have managed to improve your departure time. It’s now 3:15pm.” 😒
Let me say here, I am not a person who gets all crazy with travel changes. I’m generally easy going and let the Universe do its thing in these cases.
But the the self congratulatory tone of the final email **almost** threw me.
You’ve been pushing my flight time back, repeatedly all morning. You’ve forced me to change my plans at my destination. And now you’re patting yourself on the back for shaving off 15 minutes on a 3 and a half hour delay?
I call that 👉 misaligned communication.
There should be some sort of algorithm that acknowledges their error because you can only gaslight customers so much before they lose faith in you…
Maybe there would have been less frustration around the situation if they had simply sent one email that said my flight was delayed, please show up two hours before the new time.
Most businesses are not airlines, but there’s still a lesson here.
Too much communication can actually work against you, and make you look like you don’t have your sh!t together.
When updating a client or customer, come to an internal decision before reaching out.
Keep your communication respectful but concise.
And hopefully final.
We all have lives to live without being ping ponged by mixed messages.
How you communicate can be the difference between keeping or losing customers forever. 🌟 Be thoughtful with your communication, and it will serve you every time.
