1. In a retail environment, I personally experienced “Force” when the vendor credited my account immediately upon the scanning in of the Return Merchandise Label; and shipped out the replacement product, rather than delaying the shipping out of my replacement product by 10-14 business days. Within less than a year, that company has opened several distribution centers in varying states in order to further add value to the customer experience.
Similarly, I was the recipient of tremendous “Friction” and poor “Engagement” when I returned a product in person due to the fact that provider of the product had no online presence or documented Return Policy. In the face to face experience, I had to elevate the matter to the store manager in order to get a refund. My intent was to merely “exchange” the item, however; the level of poor customer engagement and customer service, led me to question the quality of the product.
It was obcvious that there were no documented “processes” and/or “workflows” in place, in order to provide a playbook for how their service representatives interfaced with their customers. Loss revenue nullifies any potential to “scale” in any business, regardless of whether the environment is a service driven business model; or a product driven business model.