This week the Greater Peterborough Chamber of Commerce, in Peterborough Ontario
In an age where technology has integrated with customer service, there is still a glimmer of hope by an aging population of consumers, that company employees from the CEO to the CSR are attentive and appreciative of their business. With the popularity of one stop shopping and online ordering, service excellence has sometimes taken a back seat to convenience.
It's no wonder that in this age of technology companies struggle with the human approach to building relationships with their customers. Cost savings, efficiencies and optimization implemented to improve the bottom line often resulted in technology replacing labour. The introduction of voice answering services, centralized service centres and automated menus left customers feeling unappreciated, unwanted and most of all unheard.
Is it necessary for service to take a back seat to technology? One solution is to improve the Human Approach to customer service. It goes like this:
Treat customers how you would like to be treated. Show customers you respect them. Engage in open dialog when appropriate. Thank customers for their business.
Treat customers how you would like to be treated:
This is a common sense approach to business. Customers expect that employees can help them with their questions. I asked my son’s fourteen year old friend who stocks shelves at a chain store if he is approached with questions by customers. “All the time”, he replied. I asked how he deals with it and he said, “If I know the answer I help them, and if I don’t I ask them to hold on until I go and find the answer”. (common sense service at it’s finest).
Show customers you respect them:
Customers visiting or approaching your place of business should be treated similar to how guests would be treated in your home. Welcome them. Show them around. Ask if they need anything. Chat about happenings. It’s the human approach.
Engage in open dialog when appropriate:
When did we become afraid of small talk? It’s possible that the new generation of “texties” may be unfamiliar with this element of communication? It’s okay to chat with customers about non-business topics when appropriate. Weather, local events, similar interests are all safe topics. All business all the time makes customers feel detached regardless of the type of communication.
Thank customers for their business:
This easy and appropriate gesture is often forgotten. “Thanks for bringing your business to us”; “Thanks for visiting our store today”; “Thanks for calling”; “Thanks for ordering from us”; “Thanks for thinking of us”; “Thanks for referring us to your friend”; “Thanks for liking us”; “Thanks for following us”; “Thank you for your business”; If a customer takes the time to interact with your business take the time to thank them for doing so.
Why not use the Peterborough Chamber’s excellent effort as a reminder to re-visit your businesses approach to service excellence? Maybe there’s some room for more of the human approach to customer service in your organization!
Barb is the author of “Knock their Socks off Customer Service” - An uplifting, motivating and empowering training program for front line customer service employees.
