Customers don’t see the Backstage…They Feel It!

Have you ever walked into a place and, shortly after, realized that it wasn’t somewhere you wanted to be or stay? It could be a bar, a restaurant, a retail store, or even a company that, on the surface, seemed to have done everything right. And yet, for some reason, you decide it's not where you want to spend or invest your money. As Customers, we almost never see the backstage—but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t impact our buying decisions.

Years ago, I personally experienced a situation that led to articles and even an episode of the podcast Bonito Serviço, called “In Search of the Lost Shoe!”

In that episode, which takes place in New York, shortly after I entered a store to buy a pair of shoes (among other things), I commented to my husband that the team’s atmosphere was a disaster and that the leadership was probably mediocre. My certainty made him question mme. He asked what facts led me to such a bold conclusion. As the story unfolded, my suspicion turned out to be right. Very right, in fact!

As Customers, we are often the first to sense and detect an organization's problems even if we don’t see them directly. That eye-roll we catch when a particular topic is mentioned, a quick exchange between employees, or one person’s complaint about another department’s attitude. These little, yet big things, are part of what ends up becoming visible. But there’s a whole invisible backstage that, whether we realize it or not, sooner or later becomes either perceived or felt by Customers.

If we think of any organization through the analogy of a theatre or a restaurant, luxurious or not, as Customers, our place is always in the audience. And if things aren’t going well on backstage, we might not be able to pinpoint exactly what’s wrong, but we can feel the energy, the atmosphere, the authenticity (or lack of it), the rhythm, the tone, the body language, and so many other elements that shape our judgment—and, ultimately, our decision to buy… or not.

These perceptions usually stem from deeper issues that may be rooted in a variety of causes: toxic leadership, as mentioned at the beginning of this article, the absence of a strong and lived culture, internal disorganization and poor processes that lead to employee stress and confusion, lack of training and communication with teams, among so many others. These are just a few examples of what, though not visible, make us say, “Not here. I’ll choose another place!”

So, when we talk about improving Customer Experience and we associate that improvement solely with training, workshops, and front-stage actions by those who “perform,” we’re missing the point. It’s in backstage where visible attitudes, good or bad,are nurtured, where intentions are aligned, where motivation can emerge as a natural result of an inspiring environment rather than being forced as an end goal. It’s in backstage that a company’s DNA is built and defined and, that DNA plays a decisive role in any of our buying decisions. Every organization wants Customers who buy, come back, and recommend it. But when, even without seeing, we feel that something is off, we decide. And once we decide, turning back becomes the exception, not the rule.