Help Me! It's your Job!

I'll admit it, I did not read Jason's last entry, but he did tell me it was about good customer service and I know it's not original to write about the same subjects, but I really can't help it this time. Going into a store and getting rude, impatient employees attempting to service you is the worst. I worked in retail for many years and one of my favorite things about it was helping the customers. I never felt fake about it and it always felt good to find what they were looking for. And it was a relatively easy job to perform. So now when I get bad service in this terrible economy, where you should be happy to have a job at all, I get furious at them. Just put a smile on and help me, it would take ten seconds of your time. There are the rude customers you get every so often that helping them just feels dirty, but you suck it up and help them regardless.

Now getting back to the positive, when I receive really nice overall treatment at a retail store I leave in a great mood. I remember the faces of those for helped me, hoping they will again help me when I return. I had that kind of friendly, helpful service at Wegmans today. It's the busiest time to go the grocery store, since Thanksgiving's in two days, so it was packed. But regardless the employees there helped me along the way. I'd never done a big grocery trip there before so I was a little hesitant going in knowing how insane it was going to be. The customers were a little pushy and rude (I call people rude when they aren't friendly, it's the southerner in me.). There was a Wegmans employee down almost every aisle who was happy to answer any of my questions. They were very approachable and funny. They really run a great customer service regiment there.

The best part happened when I was leaving, I did not have a member card yet, so I approached the self-checkout lady and asked her advise. She said "Why don't I swipe a member card for you at the self-checkout aisle here and start ringing and bagging you items while you go get a card at customer service. That was a tremendous gesture from her. When I came back with my card, she had already rung and bagged half my groceries. I didn't have to wait in any long lines, except when I hit traffic at the 5 o'clock rush time.

It doesn't take much to please me, just a friendly smile and a little assistance goes a long way.

Great Customer Service!

Great customer service will get any business farther than almost any other factor. Take two companies that manufacture the same items. All things being equal, the company that offers better customer service will always win out in the end. And, given the relative importance of customer service in an overall business experience, even if the company with better customer service manufactured a slightly inferior product, they'd still, in the end win more customers than the competition. Because people want to feel cared for. Important.

And for me, sometimes it's in the most unlikely places that good customer service makes the biggest difference. Take fast food restaurants. My favorite? Chik-Fil-A. Yes, their food is good, especially their waffle fries. But they also offer an unparalleled customer experience. All of their employees are friendly, attentive, fast and knowledgeable. They go out of their way to make sure you're enjoying your meal, which is what the food you're consuming ends up feeling like. Your fast food experience at Chik-Fil-A rivals some sit down establishments.

And they aren't just a little bit better than the competition. They are the hands-down, undisputed king of fast food customer service, passing all pretenders to the throne by miles. Most other restaurant chains pale by comparison. At best their customer service is spotty, varying greatly from location to location, and at worst, McDonalds for one, the customer service is generally poor. Think bored, grumpy teenagers that don't look at you when they take your order and don't spit in your food only because it would impose another step in an already arduous, annoying process.

I understand you're working a minimum wage job. You may not like your coworkers. You probably don't like your customers. But don't show it! One of my greatest pet peeves is people who take their job, whatever it is, for granted, especially in the service industries.

So when you find a company that gets it, you stick with them. I don't eat fast food breakfast often, but when I do, if I can, I go to Chik-Fil-A. I'd rather give my money to companies that appear to truly appreciate it, instead of just expecting it.

Just tonight I had another great customer service experience with the Verizon Wireless authorized reseller where I bought my new Droid phone. The guy spent almost an hour with me, fixing a few bugs in my initial contract, making sure that everything was set up properly, and making sure I knew exactly what I needed to take advantage of my rebate offers. All the while an older couple was waiting for help (the guy was the only one working) and he managed to keep them happy and patient while working on my account. By the end we were all chatting, laughing, and no one felt at all put upon or frustrated.

Good customer service. Friendly customer service. Honest customer service. Those are the cornerstones of success.*


*Unless the building is a pyramid a fourth cornerstone is necessary. We'll go with free food in the customer lobby.