Good customer service
Posted: Tuesday, August 04, 2009 by Travis Cody in
Who is responsible for good customer service?
That's a pretty easy question. The answer is the service provider, right?
Well, hang on a minute.
Personally, I think that the service provider has about 85% of the responsibility for good customer service. That means customers...that's us...bear the weight of the other 15%.
My first job was as a delivery driver for Domino's Pizza. For all the people who called in with a clear understanding of what they wanted and how to order it, you'd get about 5% who had no clue. So we either had to spend extra time answering a bunch of questions, or we had to ask a bunch of questions.
We were trained to do that, by the way. It's not that difficult to be polite and help a customer through the process. Of course, we had to do it as quickly as possible and with background noise at the level of your basic subway station.
Still, it wasn't the customer's fault if we couldn't hear them. So we had to be polite and not react if they got frustrated when we inevitably asked them to repeat something. And it was critical that we repeated the full order back to the customer before we said, "Thanks so much for calling. We'll be there in 30 minutes or less."
Just a bit of trivia here. We were taught to answer the phone with "Thanks for calling Domino's Pizza. This is Travis. What can we make for you this evening?"
Nice, eh?
We'd even have people call repeatedly from outside of our delivery area and demand that we deliver to them. We could make that exception depending on how far out of the area. If it was just a couple of blocks, we'd deliver but not honor the 30 minute guarantee. Then when our driver would get to the house, he'd sometimes be berated by the customer demanding the free pizza because it was delivered outside the time limit.
So I think that customers do have responsibility to be civil and to understand store policies. We don't have the right as customers to take our lousy day out on some employee.
I think that the other way customers have responsibility for good customer service is to provide feedback, and not just when you've had poor service. I think it is equally important to commend good customer service. We can do that on the spot by smiling and saying a genuine "thank you". Our continued patronage is another way we tell a company they are getting it right.
We seem to have very little trouble complaining and making ourselves heard when we feel service has been poor. But we should balance that by telling a company when they've done something right by us.
So I've got a challenge for you. Think of three stores you go to often. Then consider the last few times you've been there. Was the service good? If you can't remember, then I'd say it was. If you do remember, then service was likely exceptional...either in a good way or a bad way.
Now, here's the big step. Contact the company and provide feedback. If service was poor, clearly explain what bothered you in a polite manner. Suppress your natural tendency to tell them how to do better. That's not really the purpose of the contact. You just want to point out a bad experience. It's up to the company to do what they need to do about it.
Of course, if the service was good, tell the company that.
If you do this already, then great! I applaud you for being an excellent customer. If you've never done it, perhaps you could consider this as a last step in your shopping process.
I started doing this last year when I received three pair of Wranglers after I had only ordered two pair from Shelplers online. I called them to get them to bill me for the third pair, and they told me to keep it at no charge.
Last month I complained about a real mess I had with my local Pizza Hut. The manager of that store called me a couple of days later to apologize and explain. We talked for a bit. I didn't yell. I outlined what I found most distressing and she thanked me for my honesty. She took full responsibility for not setting her crew up to succeed that night.
A couple of months ago, I complained about the Taco Bell just down the street. It was the third time I've contacted TB about that store. I don't patronize that location any more and I told them I wouldn't. They have never contacted me.
Today, I praised the Jack-in-the-Box restaurant just down the street for general outstanding service.
Reporting bad service makes me stop and consider, and reflect specifically on what bothered me about the service. Reporting good service makes me feel good that I've taken the time to offer praise to someone who is praiseworthy.
I suppose it's good to see this from the other side of the counter. Yes, GOOD service should be praised. I agree.