Customer Service is the heart and soul of every business and organization. Total quality management is required to provide the service expected by your customers and clients.
4 Basic Rules of Good Customer Service
I want to provide a few elements that are essential to any customer service field. If you have some more ideas or a better list, please leave a comment.
1. The Customer is Always Right.
This does not mean that if the customer says the sky is red, then it must be red. What it means is that your customer believes that the sky is red, and you shouldn't treat them poorly because of it. Try to understand what your customer's outlook to a situation is and use that to find out what the customer wants.
2. Listen to your customer.
One of the many difficulties is listening to the customer. I'm sure you think you're listening to what they're saying, but are you understanding what they're trying to say?
3. Make the customer feel important.
What the customer wants is what you want: to feel important. Even if you don't like the person you're servicing, making them feel important will not only make things move faster, it will also leave both you and the customer feeling like something was accomplished.
4. Don't lose your temper.
Always remember, some customer will make you frustrated or even angry. No matter what, you must always be professional and not let your anger affect your judgement. When you get angry, try asking a co-worker if you've made a sound decision before presenting it to the customer.
1. The Customer is Always Right.
This does not mean that if the customer says the sky is red, then it must be red. What it means is that your customer believes that the sky is red, and you shouldn't treat them poorly because of it. Try to understand what your customer's outlook to a situation is and use that to find out what the customer wants.
2. Listen to your customer.
One of the many difficulties is listening to the customer. I'm sure you think you're listening to what they're saying, but are you understanding what they're trying to say?
3. Make the customer feel important.
What the customer wants is what you want: to feel important. Even if you don't like the person you're servicing, making them feel important will not only make things move faster, it will also leave both you and the customer feeling like something was accomplished.
4. Don't lose your temper.
Always remember, some customer will make you frustrated or even angry. No matter what, you must always be professional and not let your anger affect your judgement. When you get angry, try asking a co-worker if you've made a sound decision before presenting it to the customer.
Customer Service Resources
- Customer Service Manager.com, Resource for Customer Service Professionals
- Resource for Customer Service Managers & Professionals, improve your customer service, free customer service articles & advice
- The Six Cardinal Rules of Customer Service:
- Six points to remember when working with customers.
- 8 Rules For Good Customer Service
- Good customer service is the lifeblood of any business. You can bring in as many new customers as you want, but unless you can get some of those customers to come back, your business won't be profitable for long. These 8 simple rules will ensure that you become known for your good customer service.
- How to Recover When You Drop the Service Ball
- No matter how hard we try, some things slip through the cracks. This article helps you recover and retain a customer who may feel slighted by your company or services.
- 8 Rules for Being a Good Customer
- This is an interesting article about how to be a good customer, and how to interact with a company's customer service. Things to remember when you yourself are interacting with someone providing you with customer service.
- Service Untitled
- This blog was created to provide its readers with information about customer service and the customer service experience. Most importantly, though, it will give its readers some tips and advice on how to improve both.
Great Stuff on Amazon
Customer Service for Dummies
Amazon Price: (as of 12/02/2008) 
Delivering Knock Your Socks Off Service (Knock Your Socks Off Series)
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Managing Knock Your Socks Off Service (Knock Your Socks Off Series)
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Coaching Knock Your Socks Off Service
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Sustaining Knock Your Socks Off Service (Knock Your Socks Off Series)
Amazon Price: $14.36 (as of 12/02/2008)
Knock Your Socks Off Answers: Solving Customer Nightmares and Soothing Nightmare Customers (Knock Your Socks Off Series)
Amazon Price: $17.95 (as of 12/02/2008)
Tales of Knock Your Socks Off Service: Inspiring Stories of Outstanding Customer Service (Knock Your Socks Off Series)
Amazon Price: (as of 12/02/2008)
Knock Your Socks Off Service Recovery (Knock Your Socks Off Series)
Amazon Price: $12.21 (as of 12/02/2008)
Other Related Lenses
- Customer Service Reader
- Notes from works of experts in customer service, with some commentary based on my 25 years in the front line.
- Customer Service Standards
- Focused on standards of customer service, this is a sublens of Customer Service Reader. Standards define what customer service means, and what behaviors are expected of the members of the organization. They form the backbone of the customer service program. Without enforced standards, the program is spineless.
- All Things Customer Service
- Learn all about what it means to provide exceptional customer service. Read articles, the CustomersAreAlways blog, find books about customer service, plus much more...
