Do they really care about you as a customer?

Part 2 – Do you know what excellent service feels like?

If enough Vincentians demand to be treated with respect and use our spending power as leverage, businesses who offer poor service will change when they realize they are not making as much money. There are enough people who are simply fed up with the disgusting level of service or lack thereof that we can seriously send a wake-up call to business owners who still look down their noses at the people who keep them in business. First, you must know what excellent service is before you can demand it. Here are just some of the basics you should expect.{{more}} These are just the bare minimum:

You should be greeted immediately. As soon as you enter the door, you should be acknowledged with a smile. That is just to let you know the business is excited about the possibility of you deciding to spend your hard-earned dollars in their establishment.

They should offer to help. Simple words such as “how may I help you today?” or “looking for something in particular?” Then the service representative should actually wait for a reply from you and act on it.

They should thank you. Yes, they should say it with enthusiasm, too. “Thanks for the purchase,” “we are glad you came in today” or “we appreciate that you chose us.” The choices are endless on how they can say thank you. Just printing it on the receipt or on a bag is not enough.

Make an effort to look. When a customer asks for an item, the service representative should make the effort to actively search for the item. Too often the reply is “I don’t know if we have that” or “I am not sure” and no effort is made to find the answer.

No cell phones while serving. The next time you see an employee talking on his/her personal cell phone, especially while serving you, tell the manager. If the manager is the offender, ask for the owner and tell the owner. If the owner is the offender, explain to the owner that you would really appreciate it if he/she would show the customers they are valued by not speaking on the cell phone while serving customers. If they get upset, tell them that will be the last time you shop there and you will tell your friends about their bad service.

The bottom line is simple: excellent customer service equals more revenue. When done right, businesses who value their customers keep growing; they get referrals and customers buy more even when they don’t need the item/service, because the business has made buying a pleasant experience. If businesses don’t want to understand that, then you as a customer vote with your dollars and take your business to a company that does.

Social media has been used as an agent of change around the world, so why not in SVG? When you meet a company that delivered great service, by all means tell your friends and post it on your Facebook, Twitter, blog, etc. Praise them and let’s help build them up! Connect with me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/workplacesuccess

) and tell me which company you believe values you as a customer or send an email to karen@workplacesuccess.com or tweet to www.twitter.com/worksuccess

.

Karen Hinds is “The Workplace Success Expert.” For a FREE

SPECIAL REPORT on Avoiding Career Killers in the Workplace,

send an email to info@workplacesuccess.com

Visit online at www.workplacesuccess.com