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It takes effort and intention to create anything, including customer experiences based on trust. It’s a matter of not just talking about what you’re about but truly living it.
Many small and large companies use Client Relationship Management systems to automate relationships. However, can we automate and mechanize relationships?
Sure, the system can send invoices and surveys out because it’s transactional and makes us more productive.
But often, customers feel a lack of connection because meaningful relationships go beyond the transaction. It takes effort to build trusted relationships because it means truly caring about the experience.
Sometimes, after a disappointing experience, we try to speak to a human, but no one responds because there is no real relationship.
Perhaps this is just dumbing us down, preparing us for more robotic interactions?
For many of us, relationships involve both giving and taking. Listening and genuine engagement become essential. And we take note of actions aligned with words.
Imagine you visit a local restaurant in a foreign country where you don’t speak the language. The staff goes out of their way to ensure you have a great experience from the moment you enter. They send someone over who speaks your language. Suddenly, you realize you have been talking to the owner for fifteen minutes, who has been taking your experience to a different dimension. It takes effort not to be seen as a number.
Not only is the food excellent and made with love, but the whole experience becomes memorable. The next day, you and a friend decide to go back. And you spread the word because it takes effort to write a review that helps the owner make his dream real as he opens more businesses across the island.
When we engage and build trust, there is magic. We look forward to the next connection and conversation. And we can openly talk without being perceived as complaining.
However, when interactions feel transactional and mechanical, we may not return or spread your words. Because without the experience, words become empty and meaningless.
In a world full of transactions and automation, being real is the foundation of lasting relationships. We alone recognize who genuinely embodies values and who does not.
No app or quick solution builds meaningful trusted relationships. Leadership is not a title but an understanding that it takes effort to plant a healthy garden of experiences. And just as quickly we create relationships, lack of trust and humanity can tear them apart. Imagine a world of trusted relationships where what we say means we care beyond the bottom line.
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