Most workers think they do customers a favor by attending to
them but in actual fact, the customer is the one doing you the favor by
choosing to spend his/her money on your
service or product.
She was shabbily dressed when she entered the supermarket
and was delighted to find two gentlemen who could help her get what she wanted.
Eric and Steve saw her approaching and listened as the lady asked if any of
them could show her round the supermarket since she did not know exactly how to
get what she wanted. Eric, asked to get more information on what she wanted but
Steve retorted, “We are busy here, madam. It is a big store, feel free to walk
around and search for what you need.” The lady gave a weak smile and started to
walk away but Eric quickly offered to assist the lady: “I’m here to help you
get what you need, Ma’am,” he said. Steve stood and watched, caring less: there
were more important customers to attend to.
After some few moments, Eric and the lady got back to the
counter with the lady full of smiles, having found what she wanted. She
frantically thanked Eric, paid for what she had bought and walked away. Eric explained
to Steve that the point was not how the customer looked but rather what the
customer wanted.
A few hours later, it was announced that the owner of the
store was paying a surprise visit. All the workers stood in anticipation of a well
dressed man with class but were all surprised when the lady who had come in earlier
in the day looking shabbily dressed, came through the door. Steve could not
hide his shock as he stood shaking and sweating profusely, knowing he had lost
his job.
The lady introduced herself as Helen Meeks, the owner of the
Meeks chain of stores and thanked all the workers for their exceptional
customer service after she shook hands with each one of them. She added, “It’s
not the employer who pays the wages. Employers only handle the money. It is the
customer who pays the wages” – Henry Ford. She explained to them why customer
satisfaction is paramount to their kind of business. “Exceed your customer’s
expectation. If you do, they will always come back. Give them what they want -
and a little more.” With this, she turned and walked away.
Eric was later given a medal of honor by Ellen Meeks to
serve as motivation to him and all the other workers. Steve did not lose his
job but resolved to be more customer-friendly.
“It is so much easier to be nice, to be
respectful, to put yourself in your customer’s shoes and try to understand how
you might help them before they ask for help, than it is to try to mend a
broken customer relationship. – Mark Cuban
by Kofi Ephraim
0 comments:
Post a Comment