It was a Friday afternoon. The kind of Friday when you’ve already mentally clocked out — and then the phone rings. A client’s e-commerce platform had crashed during a flash sale. Revenue was dripping down the drain by the second, and the customer experience was unraveling fast.
But instead of panic, there was action. Within minutes, the hosting provider, the CRM team, and our in-house developers were on a joint call. The issue was diagnosed, resolved, and the sale extended. The client? Grateful. The customers? Still loyal.
This is the power of strong partnerships.
In today’s interconnected world, no business runs in a silo. And when things go sideways — and they will — the strength of your external relationships, and the quality of your customer experience, often determines whether your brand sinks or swims.
Why Even the Best Systems Break
Technology fails. Human errors slip through. Logistics get snarled. It’s not a matter of if — it’s when. According to a 2024 survey by Zendesk, 68% of customers stated that a single negative customer experience can deter them from a brand for good.
This is why response and recovery matter just as much as prevention. And that’s where partnerships come in.
Behind Every Great Recovery Is a Great Partner
When you choose your vendors, SaaS providers, logistics firms, or even call centre teams, you’re not just choosing a service. You’re choosing a first responder.
The Shipping Crisis That Didn’t Spiral
During the 2021 supply chain crunch, beauty brand Glossier leaned heavily on its fulfilment partner to proactively update customers and reroute delayed shipments. Result? Minimal backlash. Maximum transparency in customer experience.
Lesson: A strong partner doesn’t just fulfil orders. They help protect your relationship with your customer.
Tech Glitches + Quick Fixes
Slack once suffered a global outage — but thanks to transparency and coordinated response across AWS (its cloud provider) and internal engineering, downtime was limited, and trust remained intact.
Lesson: Visibility + collaboration = resilience. You need vendors who answer, not vanish, when things break.
Building Resilient Partnerships Before You Need Them
Crisis isn’t the time to exchange business cards. The best partnerships—especially those that elevate customer experience—are built with intention, long before disaster strikes.
Here’s how to nurture them:
- Set expectations clearly (SLAs, escalation paths, shared KPIs)
- Schedule regular check-ins, not just when something’s broken
- Involve them in planning, not just damage control
- Celebrate wins together — partnerships aren’t just for problems
According to McKinsey, companies that invest in strategic partnerships report up to 20% higher customer satisfaction scores during crisis moments.
A Culture of Collaboration Is the Best Insurance
Ultimately, it’s not about eliminating every error. It’s about ensuring your team and partners rally together when things fall apart. And when your customers see that, they remember — not just the glitch, but the grace with which it was handled.
So, the next time the server crashes or a package gets lost, ask: Do I have the kind of partners who’ll help me fix it — fast, humanely, and with the customer at the centre?
If the answer is yes, you’ve already won.
Also read: Strategies for Customer Success During Economic Downturns