Part of the teen-to-young-20s vernacular, a “fail” is, among other, things “the glorious lack of success” and “something that is bad or poor at what it is intended to do while achieving nothing that it’s supposed to do.”
Listening to Generation Z talk about customer experience, it’s obvious they think many companies that wish to serve them are failing dramatically.
Unsurprisingly, this isn’t a group who is shy about sharing their opinions. In fact, they’re quite likely to leverage their social influence to mock your company, telling others–in often hilarious terms–exactly how your company failed.
As a result of these customer experience fails, they have some advice for the companies they do business with. Here’s a short list:
1. Don’t direct market or try to sell to me unless you can serve me.
2. Have groups in your company talk to other groups in your company.
3. Update your technology so you know who the hell I am and what I need.
4. Make your technology work with my technology.
5. Be available to help me when I need you. My schedule should not be dictated by yours.
6. Empower your employees to actually help me.
7. Saying you care means less than nothing. Acting like you care means everything.
8. When my problems are caused by your stupidity, they should be your problems.
9. Own up to your fails.
As a group, Generation Z epitomizes the future of smart customers. They have never known a world without the Web. As they become adults, they expect everything to be connected, to be digital, and to be instant.
So if your company is serious about competing in the years ahead, it might be a good idea to listen to what some of your younger customers have to say. It would be an epic fail not to.
