I think almost everyone in this world of ours has experienced poor customer service. There are two things we notice, as consumers, about customer service. Good customer service and bad customer service.

We never compliment or complain about mediocre customer service.

We notice good customer service because typically the venue and/or the service staff goes beyond the call of duty or the staff appears to make their customer’s experience an enjoyable one.

We notice poor customer service because typically the venue and/or the service staff fail to meet the customer’s needs. Whether it’s slow service, improperly cooked food, rude staff, or a dirty establishment, we as customers notice this and it makes our experience less enjoyable.

An additional problem to the customer service aspect is that customers are much quicker to criticize for poor performance than compliment for exceptional performance.

Here is a small example of something I have dealt with for several weeks and consider to be poor customer service, even though it’s minute when compared to the various things that have happened as thousands of establishments.

I typically will go to Taco Bell about once a week to grab a couple crunchy tacos and a chicken quesadilla. I always go through the drive-thru. After pulling up to the drive-thru, I am greeted with a voice that says, “Hi, How are you today?”. The voice sounded familiar and I responded with, “Just fine, thanks”. Then, another voice comes on saying “What can I get you today?”. I was taken back because it was a completely different voice. Taco Bell had used a pre-recorded voice to greet me!

I proceeded with my order and went on my way, still shaking my head that I was greeted by a recorded voice.

Last week, again, I went to Taco Bell and was greeted by a different electronic voice, again, saying “Hi, how are you today”. You’re not fooling me Taco Bell, it’s still recorded, just a different voice. Maybe they change voices once a week.

The above got me thinking what reasons Taco Bell could have for using a recorded voice to greet a customer. I mean, it’s only 5 words. “ Hi (1), how(2) are(3) you(4) today(5)?.

Is it just a filler so the customer doesn’t hear blank air for 30 seconds? If that is the case, I would rather hear “Please hold a few moments until a Taco Bell employee can assist you” than “Hi, how are you today”.

I have done the right thing and contacted Taco Bell with my issue. It is not an issue hard enough to make me no longer eat at Taco Bell, but it is worthy enough of a mention to management.

As I said above, this example is small in comparison, but it still represents what I would consider poor customer service.

I almost feel inclined to call good customer service an art, because there is a lack of it when compared to mediocre and poor customer service.

Just like a well designed website, a beautiful painting, or a sleek looking car, when good customer service falls on our lap, we, as people, highly appreciate and compliment it.

Now, good customer service does NOT fall solely on the hands of the company/corporation. Good customer service can fall on the customer/consumer as well. Let me explain.

When a customer notices poor service, it is our duty to express our disapproval with the service to not just those who are currently helping us, but also to those who represent management. If nothing is done with management, than you must take your complaint to a higher authority, typically those sitting high in a corporate office. Most company policies that affect chains (like a Taco Bell, a Supermarket, movie theatre, etc…) come from a top corporate office which holds the executives, presidents, and decision making individuals.

Sometimes, poor customer service is the result of a poor employee and the issue is resolved very quickly and without the need to contact corporate. My issue with Taco Bell, I felt, was more of a corporate decision than an individual store decision.

We, as customers, should also compliment good customer service when it happens. Be generous and express your gratitude for the great help/service that was provided to you. Go a step further and contact corporate and let them know how happy you are with the product/service.

Companies require customer feedback in order to provide quality service, so if someone received great or poor service and they keep silent about it, both parties lose.

I would say 80% of customer service falls on the lap of the company whereas 20% falls on the lap of the customer.

All the customer has to do is let the company know when they are being naughty or nice. It’s up to the company to implement the suggestions.

First, listen to your customers. Without them, you would not exist. Always treat your customers with a smile and a positive attitude. It represents your organization poorly when I place a restaurant order and the look on the waiter’s face is that of depression and laziness. If you get my order wrong, and I explain this to you, then you should do everything in your power to make the order right for me. Make the customer happy, but not at any cost, in my opinion.

If you have a rude and arrogant customer who is disturbing not only your staff, but other customers in your venue, then do the responsible thing and discuss the situation with them, and if this proves null, then refund their money and politely ask them to leave.

The customer is not always right, and you, the company, should not have to treat them like they are. Too many companies sacrifice quality service when they spend their resources dealing with a particular rude customer. If the fault lies on the lap of the company, then it’s your responsibility to fix it, but if the fault is with the customer, do your best to explain everything to them and resolve the matter in an appropriate manner, even if that requires you refunding the entire cost of the item and asking them to vacate the premises.

There are too many people in this world who take advantage of companies by being that ‘rude’ customer, thinking if they cause a big enough scene, they will receive special treatment. Unfortunately, this works in many situations. Trying to pinpoint these types of customers is often a difficult task.

However, by ridding the bad customers, when you can, you make the overall experience for the rest of your customers a more pleasant one.

When I say go the extra mile, I mean for the whole business, not on an individual aspect. Take your corporation / company to new heights by putting customer service at the forefront of your business. Make every customer feel like they are unique and special to your success. The customer really is the reason your company is successful, so why not show them some appreciation.

Poor service is going to happen; the goal is to minimize this when at all possible. Why is it Geico can claim a 97% customer satisfaction rating? Because Geico is very good when it comes to customer service. I personally use them for auto insurance, and the times I have requested their services, I have always been given a well spoken customer service representative who answered my questions, was very nice, and essentially was willing to do whatever to make my experience with Geico a pleasurable one. I am sure Taco Bell has a fairly high satisfaction rating and my issue with them wasn’t so much a complaint as it was a request.

What many corporations/companies fail to realize is the power of word of mouth. MOST successful organizations are in that position because of customers, and there is a good chance customers were referred to the organization by other customers.

If you provide high quality service, people will notice it. They will then tell their friends about the great service you provided. A small domino effect will occur providing your business with more customers simply because of the good experience one person had.

The adverse effect can happen if a customer’s experience is poor. A bad review in a magazine or someone telling a group of people their poor experience at your store can cause a business to lose hundreds, thousands, or even million’s of dollars in revenue, simply because word of mouth. I always encourage people to not rely on the opinions’ of other people and to try out the service for yourself. What might be poor service to one person might be good service to another. What might be good food to one person may be horrible to another.

However, this is the real world and in the real word, word of mouth can spread like a brush fire and bring an organization to its knees if the spread is wide enough.

Everyone wants to win in this situation. The customer wants to have a positive experience, and the company wants to make money and provide a positive establishment for their customers.

This takes the actions of both sides.

Customers: Please express your opinion about poor, mediocre, and quality service to the appropriate representatives. Provide feedback, because without it, the organization cannot positively grow in the right direction.

Company: Listen to your customers and put into effect many of their suggestions. Your goal is to make money, but don’t try and make money at sacrificing the quality of your service.

Taco Bell: Remove the automated greeting for your drive-thru window. I want a real person talking to me, not a recorded voice.

I wanted to make a mention of a great customer service website I recently came across. It’s called Return Customer and it focuses on many of the things companies can do to make an experience better as well as the site owner’s opinion as a customer. I encourage you to visit Return Customer.