Sloppy Customer Service Scares Away Business

by Marty Stanley

Sometimes I wonder what business owners are thinking when it comes to decisions that affect customer service. It’s like all their synapses aren’t firing at the same time.

At some point, we’re all consumers, and we all seem to want good service, knowledgeable salespeople and friendly assistance. When we’re on the receiving end!

But too many times when owners don the big management hat and are busy “looking at the big picture,” the executive decisions they make in an attempt to “improve the bottom line” lack simple common sense.

Here’s a good one to think about. Several weeks ago, a major computer chain cut the top 20 percent of its top salespeople because those people made too much money. If one subscribes to the 80/20 rule, then 80 percent of the sales are made by 20 percent of the salespeople—most likely the top 20 percent!

Hey, I’ve got a great idea! Let’s eliminate those people and let the remaining poor and marginal performers serve our customers. That way, we can make more money.

Thanks a lot! I’ve been on the receiving end of those people and it’s no fun, particularly when you’re making a big technology purchase.

If you have the time and a sense of humor, being the recipient of poor service or unknowledgeable salespeople can actually be pretty amusing.

One time, for example, I went to a gourmet deli with my mother. The young woman behind the counter didn’t have a visible orifice that wasn’t pierced in multiple places, and she had tattoos on any area that spanned more than three inches.

When my mother ordered a BLT sandwich, the young woman snapped at her, “You DON’T want to eat THAT!” Startled, my mother asked why. And the young woman replied, “Bacon’s BAD for you.” My mother said, “I’m 80 years old. I don’t think it will make a difference!”

When I asked about two items on the menu, the young woman sneered at me, “I don’t know. I don’t EAT this food!” She then told me the deli was going out of business that day and she’d be looking for a job. Good luck, kid!

Personally, I think she could have single-handedly bankrupted the place with her attitude.

Then there was the time I went into a music store and asked if they carried a certain CD by Paul McCartney.

I’ll spare you the agony of this entire encounter, but let’s just say that the kid took more than 10 minutes looking it up in the computer. My coaching for that day included a spelling lesson . . . McCartNEY, not McCarTHY. And the first name is PAUL…
When he finally found the listing for the CD, the kid looked at me and said, “Wow this guy had a lot of music!”

Where do they find these people, and how do they train them?

Amazing.

Every once in a while, you do run across a thrilling experience of good service and great attitude. I stopped at my dry cleaners one afternoon when I was in a particularly crabby mood.

The clerk was on the phone behind the counter. My first nasty thought was, “Oh great. Now I’ll have to wait until she’s done with her personal conversation before she can take care of me.”

But what she was actually saying on the phone was, “Look I have to go!  I have customers to take care of!”

Hhhmmm. She then charmed me with how her friends didn’t understand how important customers are and they come first. I was putty in her hands at that point. That dry cleaner has my business—at least as long as they continue service like that.

There’s a school of thought that says, “Hire for attitude and train the detail.” Obviously, there are many products and services that require previous technical knowledge or skills. But if you want new and repeat business, your frontline workers’ appearance and communication with the customer are still important.

So here’s the coaching for the month.

Remember as a kid that one of your first lessons was to Stop, Look, and Listen.

Do that in your business—every day for at least a week.

What do you see? What do you hear? Are you really seeing and hearing what your customers see and hear? And is that the way you want it?

Either way, look back at the decisions you have made that resulted in what you’re seeing and hearing. Applaud yourself for the good ones and take action to correct the bad ones.