Managing the Customer

We love great customer service – actually we expect great customer service! But we don’t always get it and often when we’re on the giving end we don’t practice it either. There are lots of books and articles about giving excellent customer service, and invariably they all say the same thing: people need to be trained about the process, they need to understand the impact that it has on the organization and then given the customer service skills to do it right. Well, that’s only part of the story. I think it comes down to this: people have to be motivated to want to provide good customer service, and even if they are, like any habit-changing dynamic people will every once in awhile slide backwards, and some people will refuse to change at all. That said, most people will do it if two actions take place: First, they have to have the rationale and skills on why and how to do it, and second management needs to reinforce it. Everyone will agree on the second, but what about the first? The rationale to do it comes down to Control and Manage. Everyone wants to feel that they control their actions, but they really don’t. Psychologists tell us that this is do to the rule of reciprocation; our initial reaction to others based on the perception of how we feel we are being treated by them. This has far reaching implications for customer service, especially on the frontlines because in my experience frontline staff tend to react to customers. If a customer doesn’t smile, looks unhappy, then frontline staff takes it personally and react accordingly. This of course sets of a chain reaction of more of the same. The more that frontline staff – or for that matter anyone – recognizes this, the greater the likelihood they can manage their reaction and control the customer interaction outcome. This is not only good for the customer, but it’s good for everyone. It reduces stress, and makes the work experience more enjoyable. More successful customer service will only take place if frontline staff and management are provided the tools and attitude awareness that will enable them to control and manage their own reactions as well as that of the customer.