The customer is always right! How often have we heard those words?
I have worked in customer service (hospitality) since my early teens as my parents have run a successful restaurant in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs for many years. You do not survive in this highly competitive market by luck. The food must be good, but so too, the customer service. The lessons learned as a teenager in hospitality are equally well applied to my career in recruitment. If you work in the service sector delivering excellent customer service is imperative! Unfortunately, in a sales environment, customer service is quite often overlooked in the drive to close a deal.
This applies to all industries, whether it be hospitality, advertising, media, infrastructure or IT, a happy customer is the key to success.
What approach does your organisation have to customer service? Have your staff members been trained properly in this area and are your customers satisfied with their experience? What are they saying about you?
Good customer service is managing expectations and understanding the need behind the request. It starts with a genuine desire to delight. Service providers must want to go beyond the mere selling of products or services. Active listening, being responsive, resolving problems if they occur and ‘going the extra mile’ are imperative. Many organisations are now hiring staff in the area of customer experience (CX). Their role is to map the customer journey and ensure all interactions are considered and exceptional service delivered at all touchpoints. With today’s multifaceted communication, shopping and distribution channels, customer experience is more complex than ever before.
Most organisations are seeking to grow their businesses and often what can be lost in the drive for growth, is remembering to care for your existing customers and building strong and long-lasting relationships with them. If you are doing customer service well, you’ll keep all your customers happy – existing and new.
