There was an article in one of the local papers a few days ago that discussed a problem the author was having with a utility company over some billing charges. I expect this sounds all too familiar to everyone old enough to remember when the customer was \u201calways right.\u201d Today it seems that the customer is always presumed to be wrong.<\/p>\n
Customer service is not what it used to be and certainly not what it should be. I see it every single day and, in fact, experienced it a couple of nights ago in a brand-new, just opened restaurant. If they don\u2019t have good customer service\/relations the first few days of being in business, imagine what it\u2019s going to be in a few months. Currently the number of companies we deal with that I consider to have good customer service can be counted on one hand. I\u2019m satisfied with the Credit Union we use, the car dealer and Costco. All the rest are marginal at best and most are unacceptable.
\nPeople seem to blame poor customer service on the newer generation, or just another example of the decline of civilization. I think the solution is simple, but often I tend to over simplify problems, Actually, we\u2019ve gotten to where we are over a period of time and a number of things have caused it.<\/p>\n
Due to the high cost of providing employee benefits, many companies\/stores have reduced their full-time staffs and a lot of the employees work less than 40 hours and are considered part time. Obviously these employees often don\u2019t have the incentive or desire to provide the service customers expect. Another trend has contributed to the problem \u2014 the rise of the \u201cbig-box\u201d stores and the resulting decline of the privately owned businesses. Managers today are focusing on ways to \u201csave\u201d money and most do it by cutting back on things that the customers \u201cwon\u2019t notice.\u201d\u00a0 The fact is, that at some point, customers do notice and business drops off. Of course it\u2019s easy to blame the decline on the economy or brutal competition \u2014 it\u2019s never poor customer service that causes business to decline.<\/p>\n
Now to try to keep things in proper perspective, part of it may be our (the customers) fault. We all claim we want good customer service, but in the end we often end up going to Walmart, or Sears or some other large volume retailer rather than a local merchant, because we save a few bucks. Good customer service is expensive to deliver; we all say we\u2019d be willing to pay more for good service, but I\u2019m not sure that\u2019s true.<\/p>\n
Today when I tell someone about a horrible experience I\u2019ve had with a company, their response is usually, \u201csame thing happened to me\u201d or worse yet, \u201cyou should have known better.\u201d What? I should have known not to trust what they told me? That\u2019s where we are? I should not trust anything a company tells me, and if I do, it\u2019s my<\/em> fault for believing them? What kind of a message does this send to the company? They think a big part of the problem is me and its permissible to continue on the current track because I have developed a coping mechanism and will continue to put up with the level or lack of customer support being provided.<\/p>\n As I said earlier, I tend to overly simplify some problems, but here\u2019s my view. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" There was an article in one of the local papers a few days ago that discussed a problem the author was having with a utility company over some billing charges. I expect this sounds all too familiar to everyone old … Continue reading
\nCompanies are in business to make money. They will trim and cut costs (by head count, employee skills, salary, etc.) as far as they can and customer service is an easy target for cost cutting. As long as its not stopping you from doing business with them, they\u2019ve got no incentive or motivation to change.
\nThe obvious solution is to stop giving them money. Take your business elsewhere. If we insist on better service and don\u2019t patronize those that don\u2019t provide it, eventually someone else will. That\u2019s what free enterprise is all about.
\nSomeone once said that customers are like teeth. Ignore them and they\u2019ll go away. Maybe corporate America should take note of that\u2026.
\n\u2014 30 \u2014<\/p>\n