Providing Good Customer Service

The Manila Times

Tuesday, July 14, 2009
MANAGING FOR SOCIETY
By Evelio G. Echavez

Providing Good Customer Service

I notice that there are businesses whose services I regularly patronize. For example, I refill my vehicle at the same gas station, go to the same service shop every time my vehicle is due for regular preventive maintenance, or eat in only a few of the many fast food chains. The reason is because I find their customer service to be good.

J. Mercer in her book, Great Customer Service, suggests guiding rules in providing good customer service and the first one is to provide high standards of service. This ensures that customers will be happy with the services that a firm offers. Nowadays, although a large number of people have relatively higher income, the people of the present generation have become “time poor”—this is in spite of the many instant things that we enjoy, like instant coffee, instant snacks and food, and instant communication through our gadgets. Therefore, businesses should not only show courtesy and provide needed information to customers, but also provide prompt service and convenience to them. Businesses should also act positively on customer complaints to provide good customer service.

Recently, I was rushing to an appointment with a daughter behind the wheel. We decided to order our food through a drive-thru counter to save on time. At the order window, the counter lady asked if we could wait for three minutes. My daughter told me that we should leave right away and order our food elsewhere because she said that just a couple of days ago, she, with other family members, was told the same thing, but they had to wait for more than 10 minutes. And to be able to get the food they ordered, somebody had to go down (as they had parked the vehicle due to the long wait) to follow-up their order. Customers should be told exactly how long they have to wait and company employees should make sure that they deliver on what they say. Because people are time poor, many of them cannot wait long for a service to be delivered. Based on this, businesses should see to it that service is provided promptly and people do not have to stay in a queue for a long time.

A friend of mine shared a recent experience regarding a service warranty offered by an electronic store. After two weeks from purchase, his new printer broke down. He brought back the unit to the store and was told that it was necessary for him to bring the official receipt or, otherwise, the repair would not start. He said that because of haste, what he was able to bring was the credit card transaction slip. He suggested that since the credit card slip was good evidence of the purchase, the store personnel could get a reproduced copy of the receipt from their duplicate files of the receipts. He explained that he seldom came to Manila but he needed the printer to be put back in good order soon. The store personnel told him that it was the official policy of the store that the purchaser must bring the copy of the official receipt.

The standard line of “because it is the official policy” often creates a difficult customer even from customers who ordinarily are cool and good-natured. This should be avoided. What the customer needs is the willingness of the business’ employees to extend help to a customer who has a problem.