Customer Service Mistakes That are Made Everyday

Build Customer Retention and Avoid Mistakes When Serving Customers

Nov 2, 2009

Investing money to gain customers is pointless if customer retention isn't equally important. Common courtesy and excellent customer service will keep them from leaving.

Why do customers never come back? Why do customers buy or not buy? Why do customers get angry? What do customers really want? How can customer loyalty be stronger? If a business answers these questions correctly, that business has no choice but to succeed because common customer service mistakes are being avoided.

Being Inaccessible or Difficult to Reach

Customers will feel they are getting the runaround if they are passed from person to person and then forced to leave a message for someone else. At worst, they expect a receptionist to transfer them to the person they are looking for. At best, a direct line number or a direct business email is what they prefer.

Always Promoting the Best Customer Service People to Management

Time and again, the best customer service clerks, tellers and order desk personnel are promoted to a position behind the action where the majority of their direct customer service contact is lost. Not every clerk warrants a promotion for a job well done because not everyone fits the management mould but it's likely every clerk deserves a raise for it. Remember that the best customer service people may better serve the company up front, training others in their excellent service skills, than be hidden in an office.

Missing Opportunities to Improve Service

When a customer demands satisfaction for whatever has gone wrong, it is an opportunity to learn and improve. Never miss such an opportunity.

Listen carefully and respond with something like, "I can understand why you're so upset. If this had happened to me, I'd feel the same way." Arguing won't work; neither will denial of involvement or single Band-Aid solutions like refunds. Take responsibility for the situation! Be sure to get all the details, involve a co-worker or supervisor if the customer demands it and promise to follow up with a solution within a mutually acceptable time frame.

If all of these steps are taken, the customer should be properly satisfied and will be telling everyone about how angry he was but how "that" store fixed everything just like he asked. A missed opportunity is a lost success story.

Lack of Personal Attention to Details

Consistently pronouncing, addressing or spelling customer names incorrectly won't win anyone points. Neither will never being able to pull up the computer records, find the correct file or not updating the system with the correct mailing address and phone numbers. Making a customer feel awkward or uncomfortable with the simplest of details will have them rethinking their patronage.

No sale is ever complete. When a customer calls up and places an order, this sale is already in but how this sale is handled determines whether or not the customer calls back with the next order. Always be working on the next order, not just the one already placed.

Customer retention in today's market is as necessary as winning new business. Make random calls to customers, particularly those who may not have called in a while. Make sure they haven't defected because they felt there wasn't any follow up or concern for retaining their business.

If there were difficult issues to resolve from a broken promise or a staff misunderstanding, call customers back after the fact and make sure they were 100% happy with the customer service solution provided. Again, never miss an opportunity to improve.

It is human nature for customers to expect salespeople to ask for the sale. Many customers will wait for this to happen before a commitment is made. Don't disappoint them! After spending a lengthy amount of time with a clerk, customers often walk out of stores without buying because the clerk simply didn't ask for the sale. Follow through by closing the sale.

All of these statements are slightly disguised versions of Can I sell this to you? They are simple and expected; don't be afraid to use them. Ask for the sale!

Making Customers Feel Like They've Been Sold To

Customers do not go home with a new car and call the neighbors over, saying, "Look at what the car salesman sold me today!" Rather, they say, "Look at the car I bought today!"

Any talk about commission, sales achieved this week, how great business is or earned bonuses will have customers feel like they've been taken instead of the feeling you want them to have; that they made the decision themselves and they feel good about it. Keep the sales numbers talk in the lunchroom or for the next staff meeting.

Lack of a Positive Attitude

Simple things like a smile, a friendly greeting, a 'please', a 'thank you for waiting' are all things a customer will notice in very short order; customer loyalty is built on it. Consider a customer service representative's job description; does it say greeting a customer with a smile is priority one? If it doesn't, it should. A smile should be the first thing an excellent customer service representative is paid for.

Great customer service is logic. Don't fall victim to making common customer service mistakes.

The copyright of the article Customer Service Mistakes That are Made Everyday in Customer Relations is owned by Deborah Read. Permission to republish Customer Service Mistakes That are Made Everyday in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.