EXPERT ADVICE
10 Ways to Lose Customers and Alienate People

What is interesting is that each of the 10 service points can be turned around into a great way to actually reinforce, and retain your customer relationships to make them even stronger. The common thread to achieve great customer service requires staffing great people, training them and retraining them. It also helps to have a company culture that values service over everything else.

1. Broken Promises

Customers get upset when a company makes promises that aren't fulfilled. This has been referred to as "over-promising and under-delivering." Adopt the philosophy that you will always live up to the commitments you make to your customers. Teach your customer service team, "A promise we make is a promise we intend to keep ... each and every time." When someone on your customer service team makes a commitment to one of your customers, your company must stand behind that commitment, even when it costs you money.

Admit your mistake, apologize to the customer and do whatever you can to make them happy. Remember this: A customer who is unhappy with your service will tell everyone they know exactly how poorly you treated them. When you treat your customers poorly, you are driving business to your competitors! Your customer service team should always over-deliver!

2. Shuffling the Problem

We have all experienced the frustration of phoning a company with a complaint and then being transferred from one unhelpful person to another. "Customer shuffling" is a nasty customer service practice the employees in some companies use to avoid taking responsibility for dealing with a customer's problem. When this has happened to you, do you get the feeling that this company doesn't really care about you, your problem, or your future business? To solve the "customer service shuffle" your company has to create clearly written procedures that each customer service representative must follow in order to address common complaints.

When you train your people, and empower them by giving them the decision-making authority, they need to solve customer-related problems, you avoid their need to shuffle dissatisfied customers around. Empower the employee who receives a customer complaint to follow up on it, from beginning to end. Customers are happiest when the customer service representative (CSR) who makes the initial contact also has the decision-making authority to resolve the complaint quickly and easily.

Ask yourself this question: How important are satisfied customers to my business? The correct answer is that satisfied customers are the key to your past, present and future success. A satisfied customer is likely to return to do business with you again and again while, unfortunately, your customers who leave dissatisfied are likely to be gone forever.

3. Poor Service Attitude

We have all dealt with customer service people who project that "it's not my problem" attitude. This makes customers so angry, many ask to speak to a customer service supervisor (CSS). You should have a written procedure in place describing what your customer service team should do when a customer is extremely unhappy or irate.

Establish a practice of monitoring interactions between your CSRs and your customers. Have your CSSs monitor actual customer phone calls and do it often. Finally establish standards for customer service and deal with employees who are rude or project an uncaring attitude to customers.

4. Making Customers Angry

Sometimes a customer's problem is solved to his/her satisfaction and sometimes it isn't. If that customer is still unhappy or angry with quality of service, it's highly unlikely that person will be a repeat customer. However, some companies have a way of calming down and satisfying even their most unhappy customers. Do your service employees know how to do this? What do your employees do with irate customers? Do you have a procedure in place? A company in which the customer service people know how to satisfy those unhappy customers is a company that trains its people well.

During the initial orientation of newly hired CSRs, you should make sure each member of your team is thoroughly trained on when to refer customers to a CSS. Use role playing so that each of the members of your team gains hands-on experience dealing with a variety of actual service-related problems that have caused your customers to become irate in the past. With a written customer service procedure in place, a strong orientation of new employees and ongoing staff training, your team will be ready to address any customer-related concern.

5. Lack of Follow-Up

You can't always solve every customer-related problem in a matter of moments. There are times when you do need to research the problem and get back to the customer. There is nothing wrong with explaining to the customer that you need time to investigate their problem. However, when this happens be sure to make a commitment to the customer of a specific time frame within which you will get back to them with a response.

Failure to get back to a customer, is like telling them that their business is not very important to you. It also sends the message that the people in your company lack integrity. If you are going to be delayed in responding make a point of letting the customer know. Provide updates as soon as you have them. Teach your team how important it is to live up to their commitments to your customers and to one another. Customers don't want to hear excuses from a company they are trying to do business with. Treat your customers the way that you would want to be treated.

6. Alienating Customers

There is an old adage in customer service circles, "the customer is always right." People who work in customer-related jobs know this isn't literally true, but when it comes to your customers, you should act as if it is. One hundred percent of the time, in our dealings with customers, you need to project a positive attitude, along with respect for your customers' point of view. It serves no purpose to argue with customers -- the outcome is never really positive for business.

You may win the argument now and then, but you will probably lose a customer. What is one customer worth? If you treat them right, you may be able to count on future business, and good word-of-mouth advertising . When you work in a job where you are in contact with customers, you can't afford to have a bad day. Don't ever forget, if it weren't for your customers, you'd be out of business.

7. Reaching an Impasse

From time to time, no matter how hard you try, you aren't going to be able to satisfy every customer. Even the most experienced CSRs run into customer-related problems over which they just have no authority. There is a way to avoid leaving the customer with a bad feeling about your company, and it involves having a simple procedure in place. The answer when this happens is for the customer service team to get a CSS involved in a discussion with the customer immediately. Time is of the essence, and it is critical for your service team to know exactly what to do.

Train your CSRs to take the following steps: a) Initially, your CSR should work directly with the customer to resolve the problem. b) If an impasse is reached, ask the customer to speak with a supervisor. c) The CSS listens to the customer's concern. Sometimes the process of simply listening to the customer, and letting them vent their concerns, seems to extinguish the size of the original problem. d) The CSS attempts to resolve the problem and satisfy the customer. At this point, if an impasse still exists, explain as clearly as you can your company's policy and why an exception cannot be made. The key is to seek understanding from the customer, not agreement. Often, once the customer understands your explanation of why, they are more likely to accept the decision, though they may still disagree with you. e) Apologize for any inconvenience the customer has experienced and thank the customer for their business. In some cases, the CSS and the customer will end their conversation at an impasse simply agreeing to disagree.

Teach this procedure to everyone and post a copy of it on every bulletin board. Review it with new employees and periodically discuss it at team meetings with your entire staff. If your company wants to be known for having great service, the key is to provide ongoing customer service training to everyone who is in contact with your customers.

8. Apathy Toward Customers

Do you know who pays the bills at your business? I am talking about the rent, lights, gas, electric and even your pay and benefits. The answer is, of course, that your customers pay all of your bills by choosing to spend their hard-earned money on your products and services. However, customers can change their buying habits, and they do it all the time. Don't ever forget they can choose to walk away from your business in favor of spending their money on your competitor's products and services.

What are you doing to make your customers want to continue doing business with you? Are any of the people servicing your customers taking your customers for granted? There are plenty of alternative sources for almost every product imaginable. Is there a compelling reason why your customers should continue doing business with you?

9. Noncompetitive Practices

Customers have more options for purchasing products and services than they have ever had before. Everyone has Internet access, and they use it to compare products and services. You should make it a practice to study the competition.

Study their pricing structure against your own. Customers will pay a fair price. Study your competitor's pricing structure and make adjustments accordingly. Don't underestimate the intelligence of your customers. People are smart, and the market will dictate what you can expect to charge for your products and services.

10. Mishandled Issues

When a customer makes a purchase, it is quite easy to smile and thank them for their purchase. How does your service team react when that same customer asks for a refund or a replacement? Often CSRs are well trained to sell products and collect money. Less time is typically spent on teaching the importance of service after the sale.

Your customers will learn more about you from the way you deal with dissatisfaction than they will from the way you handled their original purchase. Do you provide service with a smile? You should handle both transactions in the same positive manner. If you treat your customers well when they have a problem they will reward you by returning again and again to do business. Show your loyalty to your customers by taking care of them when they have a problem, and they will reciprocate by being loyal to your business.