Do you like your customers?My husband teaches an evening class at a local college. On Friday night, he took me to his school’s holiday dinner party, where we sat at a table with the president and her husband, a couple of distinguished teachers, and the school’s librarian. During the meal, one of the professors praised the librarian, “I have been teaching for thirty years and she is by far the very best librarian I have ever met.”
The professor went on to give me glowing examples of how she came up with innovative ways of solving problems and raved about how well she serves the teachers, students, and staff. The president chimed in, too, obviously very pleased with the excellent customer service the college’s librarian offers.
After dinner, I found myself alone with the librarian while the others were off to the dessert buffet. I asked her, “What is it that you do for your customers that makes them so pleased with your service?” Without pausing to think, she said one thing and one thing only, “I like them.”
It’s the simple, often overlooked things that make the most profound difference in customer service. She likes the college students, even when they’re stressed out. She likes the administrators, even when they’re antsy. She likes the teachers, even when they’re tense. When you like someone, you treat them well.
What’s one thing can you do for your customers that would keep them coming back? You can like them. Imagine the difference it would make in the way you approach them, especially those challenging customers that aren’t used to being liked.
Reflections:
Of course, liking people doesn’t come naturally to everyone. If it doesn’t come naturally to you, what could you do to change your attitude toward your customers?
Other articles you might like:
- Customer service means making good on your mistakes
- Simply Excellent Customer Service
- Connect with your customers on their terms
- In Customer Service the Little Things are Big
- What if these parents didn’t have to protest?
