I don’t think you’ll find too many people who would disagree that customer service is not what it used to be. Whether you work in the business or are looking at things from the eyes of a customer, customer service seems to be a largely lost concept. Check out what happened when reporter Gail Rosenblum went shopping at a large Minnesota mall with customer service trainer Jeanette Grace. http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/blogs/283423901.html

Some people blame it on a particular generation or the general decline of civilized society, but I believe the decline of customer service began when the recession hit. Stores drastically downsized their staff and shifted their focus from customer service to being simply price driven. Time has shown the failure of that strategy. Not only are in-store sales down, but so is job satisfaction and employee loyalty. Working under impersonalized conditions has passively trained employees to not care about doing their jobs well.

Retailers and workers must realize that shopping isn’t just about buying things – we can buy things from our living room. Shopping is about the EXPERIENCE and the only way to make our customer’s experience better is to provide better customer service. It’s time to bring customer service back!

As a worker there is an added bonus in it for you when you improve your customer service; you know how doing something nice for someone makes you feel so good? Well, offering good customer service experiences to the people you encounter each day can give you that same feeling. Think about it, you’re not just selling products or services, you are touching lives. If you ask me, that sounds like a much more pleasant way to spend your work-day than merely filling your time with tasks, bored out of your mind, waiting for your shift to end… The choice is yours to make.

Here are a few simple ways to improve your customer’s experience:

Smile! – What are you saving it for? Smiling makes you and the person you smile at feel good. Why would you want to feel blah? Staring blankly at people makes them feel uncomfortable. Smiling makes people feel welcome.

Greet your customers – Do it right away, as soon as you see them, a simple ‘Hello’ or ‘Hi, how are you today’ will do and use a friendly voice – nobody really wants to sound like Siri…do they?

Gather information – Find out your customer’s name. Everyone likes to be called by name, especially your regulars. Ask enough questions to find out what they want. Use your intuition to get a feel if they want personalized attention or would prefer to be left alone. If it feels like they want some space, let them know you are available for questions and will check back with them. Don’t forget to touch base with them in few minutes even if you’re busy!

Make things right – Don’t freak out if there is a problem, it happens, what’s important is to do the right thing and fix it. If you don’t have the authority to do something, don’t let the customer walk away alone…personally get someone who can help. Never tell a customer ‘That’s not my area’ or ‘that’s not our policy’ instead say ‘What I can do for you is’. Doesn’t that sound and feel better?