Tell Me Why...

... and don't make excuses.

Many brands act like the marketplace, including their customers, must be kept in the dark. I don't know if it's because they don't trust anyone, or that they drastically over-estimate their competitors' capabilities, or some other reason.

My local Petcetera store just closed their doors. With about 48 hours notice.
No explanation, no apology, no easily-accessible information about who to contact with questions or concerns.
The store staff clearly had very little advance warning either -- they were taping up cheap-looking, photocopied "store closing" signs on the second-to-last day. They've been told that a new store will be opening, but have no idea when or where.

Let's assume the company had no choice. Maybe a legal issue requires them to leave. Maybe they're in a dispute with their landlord. Whatever.

Would it be that hard for head office to have a nice-looking poster printed, explaining the situation and apologizing for the short notice and inconvenience?
How about taking a few minutes to write a "cheat sheet" that could be distributed at the checkout, describing what do to in various situations (where to take returns, how to pick up ordered products, alternative locations for incomplete training classes, how to change grooming appointments...)?

I'm not saying they need to tell us everything. I understand the need to keep some things quiet, and the need to coordinate communications. But let's see something.

This is just one example, of course.
I suspect that a lack of communication (even just a simple answer to the question "Why?) is one of the largest sources of bad brand experiences. Think about the last time you were bothered by a brand. It probably had something to do what (and how) they told you something.

Most people are pretty reasonable when they understand your situation. And everyone -- reasonable or not -- at least knows what to do next when they're given more information. This probably saves the brand effort in the long run: who wants to deal with grumpy, confused customers?

So why all the secrets and mystery?
Sure, it's none of my business most of the time, but where's the harm in at least satisfying my curiousity?

And don't get me started on excuse-making...
Take Canadian Tire's recent decision to eliminate e-commerce from their Web site. Baffling most digital marketing professionals, the announcement was made with very little explanation. The reasons giben were, frankly, just vague excuses. Any competent team could (and should have) overcome any of the stated obstacles. So, are they telling us that they're incompetent, or is there something else that they won't open up about?

In either case, wouldn't a greater explanation in the first place be to everyone's advantage?