Customers’ expectations of the quality of communication and services they receive from companies continue to rise. At the same time, their tolerance for mistakes that may discourage them from further cooperation is decreasing. Just a few flawed interactions can be enough to lose a customer.

So what should you pay attention to in order to avoid the most common mistakes in customer communication?

Using the wrong channel or format

This is probably the most serious and widespread mistake, and one that leads to significant customer dissatisfaction. For example, sending a registered letter to a user who has an official electronic mailbox, forcing them to queue at the post office. That is exactly what they wanted to avoid by using an electronic mailbox in the first place.

Ideally, the communication channel should be selected based on the customer’s preferences, the type of communication, and the specific characteristics of the chosen channel.

How to fix it?

You need up-to-date and high-quality customer data.It is essential to implement and develop omnichannel communication solutions that can correctly route and evaluate communication based on this data.It is also important to realize that customer expectations and preferences change quickly.

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For example, email is still the most important communication channel today, but the share of customers reading emails on mobile devices is growing rapidly. A non-responsive email that is difficult to read on a mobile phone is increasingly perceived as an inappropriate channel, as it is designed for desktop use only, not for mobile.

Sending irrelevant and unwanted content

Spamming customers with messages they are not interested in is a guaranteed way to lose them. And this does not apply only to unsolicited, poorly targeted, or insufficiently personalized offers.

In this context, the choice of channel also plays a crucial role. Customers are, for example, much more sensitive to the relevance of content delivered via SMS than via email.

A common example from the telecommunications sector that unfortunately still occurs today:
Sending SMS offers to activate attractive data packages to people who, based on their age, are unlikely to be typical smartphone users—let alone users of apps like TikTok. On top of that, the mobile operator often chooses a high frequency for sending this “irresistible” offer.

However, the situation is more complex. What one customer perceives as added value may be annoying content for another. A good example is frequent payment confirmation messages, as shown in a recent LinkedIn poll.

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How to ensure the delivery of relevant content?

First and foremost, gain the best possible understanding of your customers—and then use this knowledge to flexibly manage both the level and the content of your communication.

Our tip:
Give customers an easy way to provide feedback on whether they want to continue receiving a specific type of message or notification.

Choosing the wrong communication frequency

“You’ve used 80% of your data bundle. Your invoice is due soon. Don’t forget to replace your green card—we sent it to you by email last week…”

Yes, the days when a bank sent a monthly statement or a telecom operator sent a single invoice once a month are long gone. Customers have become accustomed to a much higher frequency of communication.

A common concern I encounter is crossing the line where additional communication starts to be perceived negatively. Are three messages per month still acceptable, but four already too much? In reality, the threshold of negative perception depends far more on the relevance of the content and the correct choice of channel than on the sheer number of messages over a given period.

The most effective remedy is to address the two previous issues: relevance and channel selection.

Poor timing

Fortunately, our phones no longer buzz at night because an IT system processed a batch and sent messages to thousands of customers—that has largely been taken care of. But that alone is not enough. Today, “poor timing” simply means any moment that is not the optimal one.

For example, customers appreciate receiving a reminder about an unpaid invoice in time to settle a forgotten payment without a penalty—not after the fact. I experienced this myself. I didn’t forget to pay; I simply made a mistake in the reference number and didn’t notice the returned payment. Receiving an SMS informing me that I now had to pay a penalty—much higher than the original amount—felt like a clear signal that I was no longer valued as a customer.

An example of how it should work

My insurance company sends me an offer to add windshield coverage together with the premium notice for the following year. At that moment, I can quickly decide whether I want it or not—simply by pointing my phone at one of two payment QR codes. At a different time, I would probably have dismissed the offer as spam.

The solution lies in the ability to flexibly generate communications based on the events to which they relate.

Final advice

The bad news is that fixing any of these issues is neither simple nor quick. In customer communication, it’s essential to remember that “one size fits all” simply doesn’t work.

The good news is that there are more positives than negatives. The root causes are shared—and so are the solutions: improving customer data quality and implementing omnichannel communication solutions that can deliver the right content, through the right channel, at the right time.

Another piece of good news is that there are companies on the market that specialize in customer communication and can help design an effective strategy and implement it successfully.

And most importantly, there is a huge opportunity in improving customer communication. If you focus your efforts in the right direction, you will gain a significant competitive advantage. There are still many companies making major mistakes in customer communication—and their customers are your opportunity.

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