What is GOOD Customer Service?
A common notion is that good customer service is doing any and everything to make your customer happy. The truth is though, that sometimes your customers will not be happy with your company, and understanding how to manage these situations is key.
A good example is the Financial Services industry, which I happen to know a bit about. Financial institutions (FIs) are some of the most heavily regulated and policed industries around, and some will argue rightfully so. The global financial crisis of 2008 is still fresh in the minds of any financial services professional some 12 years later. FIs these days are asked to perform a barrage of checks at every turn. You’ll be bombarded with acronym justifications like AML KYC FATCA and more. These checks can become onerous and frustrating, even for the employees who administer the checks but if you want to operate on the right side of regulation some things have to be done, even while you may be fighting for change in the background.
So what does this have to do with customer service? Well, when an irate customer insists that they will not allow you to complete required administrative tasks, your response cannot be to skirt these requirements in order to appease them. By doing this, you are often placing the customer, yourself, your organisation and the industry at risk. Customer Service is not about breaking policies, regulatory requirements and laws just to keep them happy. It is not about giving freebies every time you have a less than ideal interaction. It is about having the wisdom to understand when you are not able to provide a service in the form that the customer requests, and having the skill to end that request without alienating the customer totally.
Customer Service is about having genuine concern for the customer’s needs and wants, and doing all in your power (legally of course) to provide a service that wows them. It is ensuring that customers have all the information they need to make informed choices. It is being flexible enough to work around your environment to provide the service requested.
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