This week I experienced the perfect rendition of customer success / customer care executed by the customer care staff of SoulCycle, NY.

The Situation

I had purchased a five-class package which expired in compliance with its 45-day expiration. At the time of its expiration, I still had three unused classes left that were gone from one day to the next. The point that made me contact them had nothing to do with these rules. I had run into the expiration before and had never contacted them about it.

What Made This Time Different  

Last week I was in Washington D.C. at my company’s summit meeting. During my week-long stay there, I booked and used three single classes at SoulCycle, D.C. as my NY classes were not transferrable to their other locations.

Fast-forward to last Tuesday, when I saw that my remaining classes in NY had expired. I wrote them an email stating that I am very aware of their policies, but that I would have hoped that they notify me about the impeding loss of the three unused classes, especially after I was not able to use them the week before in D.C.

Just after I sent the email, I carried on and bought a new five-class package anyway, so losing me as a customer was not a real danger at this point.

 What I Expected

• An email acknowledging that I lost the classes together with a lengthy explanation lecturing me on the terms and conditions of service.
• Maybe a re-activation of 1-2 classes as a sign of goodwill, stating that fact, and emphasizing the goodwill factor once or twice.

 What Actually Happened

• A short email that thanked me for reaching out and stated that they were “happy to extend the expirations for me.”

So far, so very nice, but it did not end there!

• The email carried on, saying that they had found other classes I had lost in the past and that they extended all of those classes as well through September of this year.

The Effective Result  

They more than doubled the purchase I made that day by not only reactivating the three classes I lost the day before, but they went out of their way and found more classes I had lost due to expiration in the past two years and reactivated those as well.

They did not have to do that! This was extra effort that really surprised me. They lived up to their positive image and the spirit they try to convey with this very nice gesture and extra effort (that again, was way beyond what I could have expected).

 What Didn’t Happen

I did not get a painful lecture that would have made me feel uncomfortable, and most likely annoyed, because I did not follow the rules and they had to let me know. Nothing like that. Not a peep. Just looked at the situation, resolved it, and went above and beyond by going more than the extra mile for me – their customer.

Why This Is an Important Customer Success Lesson for Your Business

• Customer Success is about caring for your customer and making sure that they are successful in their endeavor. If that means investing in a paying and loyal customer, it is well worth it (remember, I already had purchased my next set of classes).
• The most powerful CS operation turns casual customers into loyal customers. Being as uncomplicated and forthcoming as they were moved me a big step closer to being a loyal customer. A competing spinning studio would have a hard time convincing me to jump-ship and come to their classes now.
• Successful CS is about more than just the price and quality of the product they provide you with. They connect with you emotionally and raise the bar for a competitor to sway you away.
• The above described experience with SoulCycle is very much in line with the overall spirit their staff tries to communicate and showcase for their customers. That their CS interactions extend that spirit elevates the authenticity of the in-studio experience by several levels.

Again, very nicely done @SoulCycle and thank you very much.

Good Job!

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