People are More Important than Things

The other day I found myself in need of a suggestion box to take with me to an industry trade show. I looked online at the website of a well-known office products retailer and found exactly what I needed. Though the website said, "For Delivery Only," I thought I'd call our local retailer to see if they had any of these items in stock...I was in a time crunch and wanted to ship this in our trade show crate rather than carrying it onto the airplane. My thinking was that perhaps someone had returned an online order to the store. That happens every day...it wouldn't hurt to ask, right?

WRONG.

I called the store and someone answered and said, "How may I help you with your purchase today?" How nice of her to say that...too bad she didn't really mean it. I started to tell her that I'd found this product online and wanted to see if there might be one...

She interrupted: "Does the website SAY 'For Delivery Only'????"

"Well, yes, but I was thinking that maybe..."

"Then it's for delivery only. We don't have it in stock."

"Okay...well, do you have something comparable?"

"I don't know...probably not...all we have are these acrylic ones."

She never even bothered to ask for the item number to which I was referring. She never even cared to listen to me speak a complete sentence. She wasn't REALLY there to help me.

I was NOT happy, but my time crunch got the better of me and I drove down to the store to take a look at the acrylic boxes to see if they might work for my need. I walked back to the shelf and -- what did I see? -- did my eyes deceive me??? There on the shelf was the EXACT box I had just called about 15 minutes prior that was "FOR DELIVERY ONLY"!!! Grrr....

I took the box to the counter (mind you, there was not another soul in the store at the moment...) and asked the lady if she answers the phones. She said she did. I put the box on the counter and didn't need to say any more than that. The box spoke for itself. She began to tell me how someone TOLD her that they don't stock that box and that she was sure another customer had asked a question about it a couple weeks ago.

As I walked out the door, the inspiration came to start my blog.

Every day we have the opportunity to communicate a spirit of service to people. This lady failed...big time. How hard would it have been for her to at least listen and let me finish my sentence? How hard would it have been for her to ask me a few questions and at least ACT interested in "helping me with my purchase" like she had offered at the beginning of our conversation? It would have taken her a few minutes in the midst of her morning where she wasn't helping anyone else anyway...she could have gone to the shelf just to make sure there was nothing there. She could have even put me on hold and ACTED like she was checking.

But she didn't. She dismissed me and proceeded to tell me the "rules". Yes, we all have company protocols, but my belief is that people are more willing to hear them if they perceive we're interested in their need first and foremost. Sometimes we do need to end up telling people our policies, but something that's been ingrained in me is the concept that "People are more important than things." Take care of their emotional need to be heard and understood...that's more important than the rules.

My View of Customer Service

I have always had jobs that required me to interface with people. I am a people person, and I hate relational conflict. This is the way God created me....and this aspect of my personality has helped me become a valued team-player at the companies for which I have worked because I honestly CARE about making people happy. I care about the impression I leave, and though at times I may fail to "come through", I am generally sincere at making an effort.

Now, I'll be the first to admit that there are times I need to grit my teeth and put a smile on my face (and in the tone of my voice) because that's not the natural sentiment I'm feeling at the time. Let's face it...customers can be demanding and rude. We all have days when we're not feeling well, or when our co-worker ticks us off. But the unfortunate truth is that nobody cares what I am going through...my job is Customer SERVICE, period.

Customer Service is, I believe, the backbone of a successful organization. In a hierarchical structure chart this position may not look very significant, but I personally feel that without good Customer Service, a company can't expect long-term success. I am a self-admitted Customer Service Snob, and I won't re-visit a place where I think I wasn't treated well...Oh, and you can bet I'll tell all my friends about my experience. And with all the modern opportunities at social networking and "getting the word out," I think that companies need to look seriously at their efforts at Customer Service...word of mouth has a whole new meaning these days.

So, with that view of the significance of Customer Service in mind, I was inspired to start blogging about my experiences.

Welcome to my blog....