Four tips for downgrading customer status
My company wants to downgrade the customer status of customers who are not maintaining their customer tier's criteria – what is the best way to approach this, from a customer experience perspective?

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It is always difficult to change a customer's status for the worst. I commend you on wishing to do it right because at the end of the day, these customers have been loyal before and this loyalty should not be forgotten. Additionally, they might come back when their situation changes.

The good news is that many of the customers affected already know that their level of business with you has been dropping and therefore they might expect a notice about a change in status. What you should do is send them a communication that includes:

1. A personalized explanation of why their status changed – what change in their business caused it.

2. Your sincere commitment to serve them well at their new, lower status.

3. Your hope that they will soon qualify again to move up to their old status.

4. A one-time offer to reclaim their old status (e.g. stay four nights in the next three months and regain your status).

By doing this, they will see that you are being fair and trying to keep their business.

This was first published in December 2008