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Wells Fargo was fined millions in 2016 for illegally opening unauthorized accounts in consumers' names.
- Companies keep customers by providing exceptional products or services that exceed expectations.
- In turn, companies depend on loyal customers to keep their cash flowing and their businesses thriving.
- But it can often take only one controversial incident to turn companies' most dedicated fans against them, costing them millions.
- Here are 7 companies that found themselves in a scandal that moved customers to turn on them immediately.
The goal of successful companies is not only to satisfy the value they promised to their customers in whatever product or service they're offering, but also to exceed expectations and keep those customers coming back. Repeat customers who become brand loyalists are often the golden ticket to success.
Tesla and Apple are prime examples of great customer retention. Tesla has multiple fan clubs, such as the Tesla Motors Club and the Model 3 Owners Club, and the average American household has more than two Apple products, according to a CNBC survey from 2017 that polled 800 people.
When a company enjoys a client base of devoted fans, it can generally count on consistent sales.
That is, unless the customers turn against the brand. Over the past few decades, some companies have suffered severe turns of fortune when their most rabid fans turned against them.
People abandon once-beloved companies for various reasons. A brand may have a drop in product quality, corruption may come to light, or a company could fail to keep up with cultural trends.
Whatever the reason for the change of heart, when a company's fans turn into foes, some brands never recover.