What to say to an upset customer

If you created a problem for you customer and they are upset, you need the correct way to make things better. You may be tempted to simply say you are sorry and hope that the problem goes away. Why...

Library Customer Service Tips: Signage

Is signage getting in the way of your service? There was a time I was a huge proponent of signage. Too often I watched as customers grew frustrated in an attempt to get around and find what they needed....

Exceptional Customer Service: Small Actions Have Big Impact

When your work takes you to lots of hotels you get to experience many different levels of service. A great deal of the training I do around the world has me delivering training at hotels. This has taught...

Customer Effort Destroys Good Will-Don't Make Your Customer Work Hard

Every time I speak with a business owner, a general manager or president of a company, they say with great pride "If a problem gets to me, I make sure that it is taken care of." They believe that the...

The Super Power I Really Don't Want

When I was a kid, my best friend Eileen and I spent hours talking about what super power we wanted. Eileen wanted to be able to fly so she could soar over the rooftops and see our neighborhood below...

When Good Customer Service Rules Go Bad

Updated January 2021 Tony did exactly as he was trained. He sent a hand-written thank you note to his customer. However, when his customer received it she was furious and tore it up into little pieces...

Provide great service by turning over a new LEAF

After waiting an hour for my food to be delivered to my hotel room—late by 30 minutes according to the delivery time promised in their email confirmation—I called the company. Then I had to wait another...

Customer Service Issues: Five Words That Could Kill Your Business

Joe left a message with a store about an order he had placed a month ago. "Hey, I hate to bother you, but are there any updates on my order?" These words may seem pretty innocuous. However, they include...

Customer Service Tip: The Importance of Being Known

You walk into your favorite diner and your waitress Judy, says, "I saved you a piece of your favorite chocolate cake". Or your mail lady, Sharise, says "How's Danny?" (your son who moved away from home...

Exceptional Customer Experiences

When we're talking about exceptional customer experiences, a banana certainly can. I dined at Parker's tonight (yes, they invented the Parker House Roll) in the Omni Parker House in Boston. The service...

Tag: Customer Service