NFIB

Customer Service Counts
04/ 11/ 2002

Most businesses have competition in the marketplace, and that means that customers can choose where to take their trade. If the same product or service is available in more than one company, customers go where they get the best treatment. According to a recent study, less than half of retail customers are satisfied with their shopping experiences. If the customers in your store feel dissatisfied, you can safely assume that your competition will get a chance to satisfy them.

The solution, of course, is to adequately train employees before they have contact with customers, provide on-going management evaluation and follow-up with refresher training. Although many managers think there is not enough time for a comprehensive training program, the lack of training is likely to take more management time. In today's Workshop, Edith Helmich discusses some areas to closely examine in improving your customer service techniques.

Sales Desk/Check-out Service -- Today's computerized sales registers require a well-trained employee. Special sales and price adjustment procedures need to be mastered before an employee is left alone at the register. Returned merchandise and price checks should be handled by a process that does not create long-lines and delays while a manager is paged. Departments must always have someone available to answer the phone.

Workplace Orientation -- Knowing where to find people in the company or products in the store is important knowledge for new employees. Expecting an employee to learn on-the-job results in delays and inefficiency, and it presents a bad impression on the customer who asks for assistance. Customers should not be expected to search for something they want to buy.

Customer Etiquette -- Employees need specific training via role-playing to make customer courtesy a routine practice. A greeting, smile, thank-you and other common courtesies are often omitted when employees get busy. Failing to apologize for a mistake or inconvenience is guaranteed to upset a customer. Failing to acknowledge a customer's presence and provide assurance that they will be helped as soon as possible is another common complaint. Employees need to be informed about the importance of tolerance and to be trained to placate irritated customers.

Appropriate Workplace Behavior -- Personal telephone calls, chatting with friends, discussing personal topics while customers wait, applying make-up or other non-job-related behaviors should be discussed with all new employees. Sanctions should be discussed before the unacceptable behavior occurs and should be applied impartially to all employees. Gross violations of proper conduct such as shouting, profanity or throwing objects should be grounds for immediate suspension or dismissal.

Staff Availability -- Coffee breaks, meal time allowances and other absences from the job should be staggered to avoid staff shortages. A schedule that rotates available staff during the workday is a necessary formality. Management supervision of break time prevents excessive absences that might leave customers unattended.

Multi-task Responsibilities -- There are inactive times in all businesses. When the primary job duties are completed or temporarily absent, employees should be expected to assume other responsibilities. When doing so, however, the appearance of a customer should create an immediate priority to serve the customer.

The final words to remember are that poor customer service hurts the business more than the customer!

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