Penny wise, customer foolish
I've had two recent customer experiences that completely baffle me.
First, I had to go jump through hoops to get a tiny service fee refunded from my bank for my personal account. Their service rep quoted policy after policy about why they couldn't refund the fee. Yet when I indicated that I would move my personal and business accounts, the fee was magically refunded.
I thought that banks were creating a "360-degree view of the customer" that cross-sells multiple products. If that is the case, why are they wasting my time?
Second, I arrived early at the airport and asked if I could get onto an earlier flight. Plenty of space available on the flight, yet they still wanted to charge me a $25 fee to change my ticket. I don't get it — why wouldn't they see that as an opportunity to build loyalty by getting a customer home faster? There is a reason that the major airlines are in bankrupcty and it is not just about excess capacity — it is because they see their customers as a nuisance.
