What’s the first phrase people hear when they call your brand’s customer support number?

This is a simple but sound strategy, and one that is also a massively missed opportunity for most brands.

People call customer support more often when things go wrong rather than right and they usually aren’t in a happy or good mood as they call in.

At that point, smart brands know that the goal is to win the prospect or customer back at all costs. 

However, the best brands know that the goal is to win the prospect or customer back at every step, especially that first key step.

This week, I’m going to rave about Gopuff, a fun alternative to Instacart.

They have a smaller product range than Instacart, but have a better approach to people and marketing.

When you call customer support for most brands, the first words you are likely to hear are the same mundane ones, such as:

1. Thank you for calling …
2. Hello and welcome …
3. You have reached …

Now try to remember—does any human being talk like that?

Brands have an opportunity to sound human, but instead they decide they don’t want to, despite employing a human voice for their automated response.

Instead, Gopuff starts the call with “Hey, there!”

You can literally hear the exclamation at the end of that phrase through that voice. 

In fact, Gopuff sounds like:

1. They are human
2. They are excited to hear from another human
3. They are eager to help solve your issue today

Gopuff realizes the value of that first impression, especially when there is an issue to be fixed.