Is it just me, or is customer service really bad all over the place? It’s bad in retail shops, on the phone, through the mail, on the Web,…

But you don’t have to be part of the problem! Here are some tips and real-life examples to help you improve your relationships with customers through outstanding service. Amazingly, as we’ll see, it all comes down to what your mother told you all along.

DON'T
Ever break your promises.
If you say, "I will get you back with that information today," then DO IT. Make a promise once to a customer and then break it, and they will think, "Oh, too bad, this business has poor customer service just like every other business..." Continually breaking your promises to customers will earn your business a reputation as flaky and unreliable-and, guess what? you will lose your customers. If you can’t keep a promise, then don’t make it; if you do make a promise, then also make every possible effort to keep it. Period.

DON'T
Make things overly complicated for your customer.
For example, If they have to search for prices or information about a procduct or need to search for someone to get the help they need; then you are making things too hard for your customers and they will leave you. Don’t frustrate your customers! Whatever they want and need from you, make it painfully easy and obvious for them to get it.

DON'T
Forget that your customers have a strong sense of fair play.
You need to make sure that you always treat them fairly, first come-first served; fair pricing; fair policies-because if you don’t treat them fairly, they will find out about it and leave you.

DON'T
Forget to say “thank you.” A store owner that I know has a system for working with clients in which he says “thank you” (in letters, cards, lunches, and flowers) no less than seven times over the course of his relationship with the customer. He’s very successful doing this. Make it a point to say “thank you” at every opportunity-your customers will feel like you really appreciate and value them.

DO
Answer your communications-emails, phone calls, and inquiries promptly.
I hate to have to say this, because it’s so darn basic, but apparently 90% of businesses still don’t get the first rule of good customer service - get back to the customer quickly. ALWAYS answer your email, phone, letters, and other messages AS QUICKLY as you can. Even if it’s just to say, “I will look into it and get back to you within 2 business days,” that’s a million times better than most businesses are doing.

DO
Make the information that your customers want easily available to them.
Once when I wanted to order 4 copies of a book, I shopped around the major booksellers. I tried several stores. Only one worked with me with the information I needed. So when I shop for books now, I will be sticking with bookseller #2, because the quality and comprehensiveness of the information they provided.

DO
Treat every customer like a completely precious individual.
Relate to him or her as if they were the only person in the world, while you're dealing with them. Customers love personal attention, so hang on their every word and don’t let yourself get interrupted. Remember that your customers are absolutely the lifeblood of your business, and treat them accordingly. No, I’m not suggesting that you form romantic attachments with your customers! but they will sense whether you believe they are valuable. So you must believe that they are valuable and then put that belief into action.

DO
Every so often, make an outrageous, extravagant effort to serve a customer. At a local store they sold out of a hot collectible item within a few hours of a news announcement. However, a potential customer then called them to ask whether any more of this item was available. The business owner, Andrew, replied promptly that there were no more for sale but that he was trying to get some. But the story doesn’t end there - Andrew hunted through online auctions for weeks, trying to find more of this collectible item. When he finally found one, he contacted the potential customer to ask whether the price being asked on auction was OK; then purchased the item and arranged for it to be shipped directly to the customer; and didn’t charge the customer a single cent beyond the original auction price plus shipping. The store actually lost some money here - hours went into finding the item and arranging the deal but the customer was completely impressed with this level of service. You should make an extravagant customer service effort soon. Even, if necessary, do it at a small loss. Maybe even put it on your schedule to find some extraordinary customer service activity to do each month (for a different customer each time). That customer will be yours forever, and might even tell his or her friends about you.