Indifference in Customer Service
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Monday, May 24, 2010
Customer Service is generally regarded as the "front-line" for any business. It
is their responsibility to service the customer, answer questions, expedite
problems and keep the customer happy, thereby encouraging repeat business. It is
intended to make money, not lose it. At least, in theory, that is what it is
supposed to be.
Not long ago we decided to switch banks, which is no small decision for any
company to make. We had grown weary of how our old bank was "nickel and diming"
us to death on frivolous charges. Even though we would call to complain, they
were slow to correct problems. Such incidents occurred so frequently we decided
to take our business elsewhere, but before doing so we gave the bank one last
chance by telling them if these trivial matters didn't cease we would be forced
to withdraw our account from their bank, to which the customer service rep said
indifferently, "Okay." We then exited stage right and opened a new account in
another bank which we have been pleased with so far.
A few months after we moved, a manager from the old bank called to say he
noticed we had moved our account and what they could do to get our business
back. We politely told him it was too late, but he should look into getting some
new customer service reps.
A similar incident happened with our garbage collection service. Their rates
slowly rose to a point where we started to look for another less expensive
service. We called our current service and talked to a customer service rep to
ask what they could do about lowering their rates. She wouldn't budge. We said
we then had no alternative but to go with another service, to which she said
"Okay" and hung up. Again, about a month after we canceled the service, a
manager called to ask why we had left them. We explained the problem and the
response from his customer service rep.
I have a friend who is a sales manager for a large distributor of industrial
supplies. He primarily hustles around the area meeting new customers and
checking on existing ones. After a customer is established, they can call in
orders, large or small, to the main office who should promptly process and ship
accordingly. One day, late on a Friday afternoon, a customer called in a small
order for a box of tape. Since it was late in the day on the last day of the
work week, the customer service rep figured the order could wait until Monday
morning. He thought wrong. The box of tape, as innocuous as it seemed, was
actually very much needed by the customer. When he didn't get it in time, he
became very upset and the company lost the customer forever. This did not sit
well with my friend who had to discipline the customer service rep for the
snafu.
Customers do not like to be taken for granted. They want to be assured their
best interests are being maintained by their vendors. From this perspective,
"Okay" is not okay. The only excuse for indifference in customer service is when
the customer is becoming more trouble than he is worth. Even then, he may affect
sales simply from a reference point of view. This also means maintaining the
status quo will not suffice. Regardless of the policies and procedures in place,
customer service reps need to go beyond the call of duty to keep the customer
happy. It is what we used to call "hustle." In other words, they cannot afford
to go on automatic, but rather think and take charge of the situation.
Let me give you an example, a few years ago I was flying on American Airlines
from Tampa to Seattle, with a connection in Dallas. This was an important
business call as I had a sales presentation to make. Understandably, I became
upset when the Tampa flight left unexpectedly late. As I arrived in Dallas, I
realized I was going to miss my connecting flight. Consequently, I was
instructed to get in line to talk to a customer service agent, a line which
moved painfully slow and my temper began to rise noticeably. So much so, an
older agent read the rage in my face and asked me to step out of line and over
to the counter where she was working. Before I could give her a piece of my
mind, she raised her hand calmly and said, "Stop. I will take care of you." I
explained my problem and, to her credit, she had me rerouted and solved my
problem. I found it remarkable how she was able to read me and defused the
situation. She did it professionally and, frankly, with a lot of class. So much
so, she turned a hostile customer into a happy one. I think her maturity and
experience had a lot to do with it, but "Okay" was not okay with her, nor was
the status quo. The process didn't solve the problem, it was her personality and
socialization skills that saved the day.
Keep the Faith!
Note: All trademarks both marked and unmarked belong to their respective
companies.
Copyright © 2010 by Tim Bryce. All rights reserved.
About the Author
Tim Bryce is the Managing Director of
M. Bryce & Associates
(MBA) of Palm Harbor, Florida and has over 30 years of experience in the
management consulting field. He can be reached at timb001@phmainstreet.com
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Article Published/Sorted/Amended on Scopulus 2010-06-04 11:07:04 in Marketing Articles
