What to Say to Customers (When You Don't Know What to Say)

By Paul Nunes

We've all had the experience. We see someone going through a difficult time and we just don't know what to say. Or, we sit down to write a note of condolence and our mind goes blank.

These days, with millions of jobs lost worldwide, and trillions of dollars of personal and business wealth vanished, it is easy to have the same reaction when communicating with customers. What can we say that can make a difference given all that has happened?

There are no easy answers, but insights from a sociological approach called "Conversation Analysis"--which examines the rules and patterns behind human conversation--can help. For example, learning about "interactive reciprocity," just one component in the mechanics of conversation, helps to explain why people shut down when others provide too much, or even too little, information about themselves.

We have observed that good marketing conversations--those created through customer "touch points" such as advertising, sales people and call centers--are defined in many instances by the same attributes that make for good conversations in any setting.

In planning what to say to customers today, then, keep five things in mind:

Be empathetic--without being pathetic. No need to don sackcloth and ashes: Despite the troubles that everyone faces, you don't want to drag your customers down further by striking an overly somber tone. Positive messages help convey real empathy. Bringing in terms to the conversation like "value," "sensible," "secure" and "affordable" can demonstrate you're on the same wavelength as your customers and buoy the conversation without being Pollyanna about it. Demonstrating real empathy also means putting one's own needs aside for a moment. So even if your business is in survival mode, it is best to forgo messages that imply the customer should help you reduce inventory and instead suggest the chance for them to obtain a well-deserved bargain.

Offer real assistance--not happy talk. Telling someone to call if they need anything is far less constructive than offering specific help. Likewise, companies that can make their proposals tangible can gain an advantage. Hyundai's recent offer to customers who lose their jobs that it will take back their cars was a powerful statement, and one that built affinity to the brand in millions more customers than those who actually purchased the Korean company' cars (though Hyundai's sales did increase, too, up in January from a year before, while other automakers experienced severe declines).

Adjust to your customers' changed behaviors. Not only have customer attitudes changed, but so too have their behaviors. They may be at work longer; they're probably shopping for discounts and eating out less. So bring the conversation to your customers: advertising in elevators and on everything from coffee cups to pizza boxes can reach people at the office, for example.

Address people's attention deficit. Not everyone will want to emulate Miller High Life's one-second Super Bowl commercial, but time-starved, on-edge consumers are likely to value advertising that's quick and to the point. Last point: You should make use of new technologies to gauge customer receptiveness and response--just as you would with body language in everyday conversation. Doing so is becoming significantly easier, as the number and quality of software tools that allow companies to measure the engagement of online site visitors and their reaction to Web advertising, for example, is rising daily.

Say something. Silence in a conversation conveys a message, too, and customers who hear nothing at all are likely to either forget you or to feel forgotten. Research shows that up to two-thirds of companies that "go dark" during a downturn diminish their relationships with customers. It also shows that those that continue to communicate with customers see a greater uptick when the upturn comes.And the upturn will come. Having a good heart-to-heart with customers today may well help it come a little sooner for your business.

Paul Nunes is the executive director of research at Accenture's Institute for High Performance.