Building strong customer relationships through “positive disconfirmation” could help companies buffer the occasional product or services failures, an expert said in a recent report.

Co-founder and managing partner of professional matching services firm LIFT PhD Lance A.
Bettencourt explained that “positive disconfirmation” activities or exceeding a client’s expectations of a certain service or product establishes strong feelings of gratitude and loyalty, which could help maintain the relationship during the occasional failure or lapse in service standards.

Further, Bettencourt states that customers will remain loyal to a company once they have established positive emotional ties with a provider when their expectations are exceeded in the first few transactions with the company.

“Early in a relationship, gestures to exceed relational expectations can have a huge positive impact on customer loyalty. And this is a good thing because it not only benefits the bottom-line, but it also buffers the company against the negative impact of the occasional product or service failure,” he explained.

Still, Bettencourt noted that customer loyalty is a double edged sword. As expectations go up, he stressed that the fall tends to be a longer one if the customer is disappointed by the company.

“Because of this, companies must take extra care to deliver relationally to their most loyal customers. They must ensure that these customers are treated well interpersonally, that promises are kept, and that customer interests are made a priority in individual interactions,” he concluded.