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A smile goes a long way
Graham Hawkes
/ Categories: Miscellaneous

A smile goes a long way

I remember once having a rather protracted experience with a refrigeration servicing company. Our refrigerator was not working properly and a serviceman came twice to attempt to repair it. It was still not fixed and was subsequently taken to the company’s premises so that it could be monitored.

 

We had heard nothing for two weeks and decided to call on the company whilst in town. We were met by a rather gruff individual who had to be prompted every part of the way to take some action on our behalf. Eventually he checked with the Service Department and found that the refrigerator was ready for delivery but we were told that they were far too busy to deliver it. I was less than impressed and told him so. After several attempts to arrange a delivery time I insisted on seeing somebody who could make a decision.

 

The representative from the Service Department was a young lady who, on logging into the computer, looked me straight in the eye and said with a smile “How can I help you?” I related the story and she immediately offered to arrange a suitable delivery time. The smile had tempered my frustration a little but I still demanded to know how much it was going to cost, and was told with another smile, “absolutely nothing because it was our fault”. This completely diffused the situation and delivery was arranged for two days later.

 

The lesson here is obvious. The people dealing with customers and particularly customers’ complaints, need to be trained to handle any situation and to always present a happy face. It doesn’t take much and it can save you and your business hundreds and maybe thousands of dollars of potentially lost sales through a disgruntled customer spreading the wrong word.

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