I feel a rant coming on….
In this day and age, how can people with small businesses be so damn stupid? In ancient times 50 years ago your business existed fairly cut off from the rest of the world. You would treat customers badly and maybe you got away with it because you were the only provider in town or you lived in a large populated area and could rely on new customers all the time. People were connected only to the extent they talked to each other. Today we have outlets to connect and share information. We can add our ratings to just about anything we want now, and it’s getting more and more connected every day as more and more people who are not afraid of technology join in and become the norm.
When you treat someone badly and they go away and you never hear from them again, do you seriously think that is the end of it? Are you THAT stupid? Yes, yes, I think you must be. Don’t you understand that when you mess with people today, as it has been always, you set in motion a negative advocacy? People who are not happy with your little business will be out there spreading the word, the negative word, to DOZENS of people, every chance they get!
They will often go out of their way to spread the negative word about you, free of charge. If your category of business comes up in conversation, even years later, they will strongly encourage others not to do business with you. And people listen to people.
Negative word-of-mouth (NWOM) is the stupidest thing you could possibly set in motion. It cancels out the positive advertising you are paying good money for because one is being said by you, which is suspect, the other is being said by someone who has dealt with you, which is almost always believed instantly.
A rule of thumb I used to hear all the time was that someone that was happy would tell like 5 people about your business but someone that was ticked off would tell 15! There is a part of us that values highly this social contract between us, we help each other because we want our opinions to matter, and when someone without a vested interest says something, if that person is credible, we accept it as fact.
The difference today is that we have so many ways to get the word out that negative publicity can spread within hours to a much wider range of people than was ever possible before. Do you think it was very smart of Verizon to piss off Seth Godin?
(http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2008/06/learning-from-f.html)
At the risk of generalizing, home repair contractors are the worst. You call and maybe you can get someone to show up or even to return your phone call. The smaller the business, the worse they are, and if it is a one man show, I would say 8 out of 10 either never even return your initial phone call or they cheerfully set up an appointment but then never show up and never call again.
Tell me your thoughts, am I alone in this?
“Make yourself necessary to somebody. Do not make life hard to any.” Ralph Waldo Emerson
Let me know what you think by leaving a comment below.
{ 20 comments… read them below or add one }
I agree totally, customer service should be number one especially in our day and age. It is just so imperative for your business to survive. My brother has a business and tries his hardest to make sure that his customers are satisfied. Now there are some who will not like or enjoy your products or services but you should still try everything in your power to make them happy. I love it when I receive great customer service, and make it known when I don’t get it. Great post!
yes! Good customer service is very important nowadays for a business to run appropriately! I guess every big busniness have good customer service these days as the customer relationship is very very essential for the success! i agree some dont have that good customer service. but thats life. Nice post! thanks!
Totally agree GOOD Customer Service should be number one in every business!
Plus there really isn’t any need to be rude to people anyway, treat others as you would want to be!!!
This is the back bone of every business and now after sales service is really important to make a brand.
cudnt agree more. its the quality and customer service that speaks for you once u have delivered.
Well I for one think that the day is coming where business who do not offer great customer service will be going swiftly out of business. They simply cannot survive if the predicted recession hits. Even if they make their prices cheap – it costs a fortune to get new clients – you make most of your money from the existing client base.
Regards, Dan
In every age the customer service was the most important thing. Peoples who were taking care of this aspect of their work had many clients.
But in these days, there are to many companies and not to many offer a good support.
I think customer service is number one important. This does not mean you give in to every customers request though as this culture does encourage the customer to insist on compensation for every little thing.
I think politeness, turning up on time, keeping to your promises and doing a job to the best of your abilities is the key to good customer service.
Bad service never ceases to amaze me…the thing with me is, even outside of the concept of what is good for business, just being a nice person in general would lead you to providing good service to people. Great post, and I like your blog!
exactly….customer is like a god!
Without good customer service — a business WILL do poorly. Why should a customer spend their money with someone who is rude to them? Being respectful, polite, and helpful are key reasons for customers to return. Good customer service enhances the whole buying experience.
Could not agree more. We all work so hard to actually get customers, that treating them badly should be a sacred rule. Sure, there are times when the customer cannot be right….but it is how you handle those situations that can make a large difference to your bottom line!
While I dont think the customer is always right, you definitely need to treat them with the upmost respect. You just have to be careful not to cross that thin line of kissing their butt, because at that point they will walk all over you.
Wow nice thoughts you were given in the above topic surely i wll accept this .we should do our business with many of the commitments and we should move smoothly along with the ciustomers. greets to you all!
Hi..Without good customer service — a business WILL do poorly. Why should a customer spend their money with someone who is rude to them? Being respectful, polite, and helpful are key reasons for customers to return. Good customer service enhances the whole buying experience.I think politeness, turning up on time, keeping to your promises and doing a job to the best of your abilities is the key to good customer service.
In my point of view customer service number is very useful to all of the people.They simply cannot survive if the predicted recession hits. Even if they make their prices cheap – it costs a fortune to get new clients – you make most of your money from the existing client base.Why should a customer spend their money with someone who is rude to them? Being respectful, polite, and helpful are key reasons for customers to return. Good customer service enhances the whole buying experience.greets to all!!!
I hate bad service and that is unacceptable… It’s hard to find a business nowadays that doesn’t claim to provide excellent service… But if you truly practice the art of providing quality customer service your clients will stick with you and your customers will do your marketing for you…
Customer service has become a fast and effective marketing tool in which many companies strive to perfect… Customer service is one of the most important ingredients of the marketing mix for products and services… High quality customer service helps to create customer loyalty…
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