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Take
the customer test... are you a prince or a pain?
We're
all customers, every one of us. And to some extent, we all serve customers,
whether we work for someone else or we're self employed.
A group
of us, who are self employed, talked the other night about the customers
we'd like to fire... those people that suck up gobs of time and still
belittle you publicly, or who are never, ever satisfied. While we all
have bad days and have bad experiences at the hands of sales people
with attitude, I wonder how many of us would pass the good customer
test.
Check
out the following customer Q and A. Which answer feels right for you.
- If
my daughter misses her weekly piano lesson, I don't have to pay for
it. Right?
Wrong. You have contracted to purchase a specific period of time
at a specific price and if you don't use the time, it's only decent
business experience to pay for the time.
- I
forgot my hair appointment. I forgot my dental appointment. I don't
have to pay for that.
People
in the business of giving service have only their time to sell. If
they're not bending over your head of hair or working in your mouth,
then that appointment is gone forever; they can't bill somebody else
when you don't show. A good customer pays for appointments they miss.
Better still, a good customer calls ahead to cancel in enough time
the office can redirect time efficiently.
-
Last week I spent an hour choosing a lamp that would be perfect in
my living room. I've changed my mind now, and I don't want to add
lighting to the living room at all. It's just fine to take it back,
isn't it?
Not really. We've come to expect that anyone in retail will take
back anything at any time for any reason and refund our money. Usually
we've destroyed the package, thrown away the protective wrap, and
lost the warranty. We've lost sight of Satisfaction Guaranteed or
Money Refunded and replaced it with Changed My Mind, You Owe Me Big
Time.
- I
went to Kitchener to buy my new vehicle because I could save $450
on the purchase price because they have a huge volume. But, I'm going
to take my new car to my Barrie dealership for all my warranty work
and after care.
And that's just fine. We've come to expect it, but it isn't really
fair to the dealership. Think about it... you've saved $450 by buying
your car (or your computer) somewhere other than your local person
who's employing local people and contributing to the local economy.
Where's the fairness in expecting the person who did not benefit from
the sale to do the maintenance work (or give you advice or service
on your computer software problem)?
-
You're sitting in the local coffee shop with a group of friends and
find yourself complaining about the service you received during your
last book purchase. You haven't mentioned this to the owner or manager
from whom you bought the book.
Really mean spirited. When we say anything negative about a business
and we haven't expressed it to the business and given ample opportunity
for amends, we're being not only unfair, but slanderous, too. Every
time we open our mouths about a business experience, we're playing
with someone's reputation. Speak first to the business, not to the
coffee shop.
- Ah,
I'm ready for a new stereo. I'm shopping around, looking for just
the right unit. It has to be small, good quality, with a remote control,
in a certain price range, with add-on possibilities. I take a lot
of time in each store, each time listening to a patient sales person
explaining tweeters and woofers and signal strength, and remote capabilities
and disc capacity. I go home to think about it. Do I owe anything
to the salesperson who's given me the consumer education?
You sure do. Most salespeople work on base plus commision. It's
unfair to use their time and product knowledge and then walk in a
day later and buy from a different salesperson. Finish your education,
say you're going to need time to think, get their business card and
make sure the sale is credited to them when you make your buy. A note
letting them know of your decision is a nice touch, too.
- It's
the week after the sale. Surely I can still expect the sale price?
Nope. The sale price is there for a reason. It's boosting traffic
during a slow period. It's moving merchandise specially ordered for
the occasion. It's stimulating clearing of stock. But it's got a start
and stop date. Yes No I'm louder with my praise of a business than
I am with my complaints. Especially in the coffee shop. Self explanatory.
- I
call the electrician from the Yellow Pages and ask him to walk me
through rewiring my bedroom lamp, or hooking up some wires to a panel.
Nice free advice for me.
That falls into the "you're a jerk" category. A tradesperson is
selling his or her learned apprenticeship skills. They're not selling
product which they can back up with some advice. You're abusing them
to ask for free instructions on how you can do what they normally
charge for.
-
I make an appointment with an interior designer for some advice about
developing my office space. Along with the designer's service come
decorator services and items. After picking the brain of the decorator,
I get my cousin to carry out the ideas.
You're stealing just as sure as if you reached into their pocket
and took product out of it. Chances are you'll be critical of what
your cousin does, too. Yes No When I've had great service, I offer
a testimonial, or write the letter with permission for the business
owner to use it in his or her own promotional material. You're a nice
person, thoughtful, and able to put yourself in the shoes of other
people.
- I
shop the loss leaders at every story... picking up the 19 cent bananas
here, the cheap prescriptions somewhere else. And yet, I expect my
local grocery store or the drug store on the corner to be there when
I need them Christmas Day.
How can we expect loyalty that we don't give ourselves?
- I
book an appointment with a wholistic service and for a specific purpose.
When I get there I add on a number of requests... help with this,
advice for that. I expect that to be built into the original price,
even though I've pushed the appointment beyond its original time limit
and intent. Unfair. It has a domino effect on the schedule and
ensures that the practitioner will be late for the rest of the day.
It's
possible to go on and on and I'm sure you've got lots of your own examples.
The point is that we often look at the Customer as King or Queen. But,
as one small business person put it... "sometimes I think the customer
has run amok!" .
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