When you are servicing a customer, do you give him/her your full attention? Or do you answer phones, send text messages, check your e-mail, talk to other associates, or anything else like that? And how do you think that makes your current customer feel? Valued? Or more like ‘just another sale’?
Most likely it’ll make him/her feel like he’s just another number – and not a valued customer! You HAVE to give your current customer (the one you’re working with) your full attention – listen to what he/she has to say, as well as what they are not saying verbally, but through body language. If you are not “there” 100%, you’re likely to miss most of those cues/clues, which can definetly cost you the sale.
Sounds like something that everyone should know? Well, maybe they should, but does that mean they practice it? No. If you were the customer who’s been put into a ‘holding pattern’ in order to wait for the salesperson to work with someone else, would you continue working with this sales person? Specially when there are a number of sales people around?
Consider this situation (all true – happened to us yesterday): We went to AFW (furniture place here in Colorado Springs), and after wandering around for a while, we finally asked one of the sales people present to help us. While she didn’t seem too enthused – she came over and wandered along with us.
We told her that were looking for a replacement of two recliners and a loveseat; to be replaced with a couch and or loveseat and a chair, leather, reclining with out a gap between the seat and the footrest, preferably brown leather – we figured it’d be best to lay that out up front, to make things easier.
After looking at a few leather sets (with the majority not fitting our description at all – which made us wonder about her product knowledge), and measuring one couch, an announcement was made that a phone call was on hold. Our sales person told us that she’d take that call and would be right back. So we waited. After waiting for a while, with no sales person coming back, we decided to go downstairs and look at chairs there. We were about ready to leave, when that sales person caught up with us. No apology, no inquiry if we had any questions – nothing. So we politely said our good byes.
She handed us her card, told us to call her when we’re coming back – and left.
Would YOU have bought?
Filed under: Attitude, Client Appreciation | Tagged: Customer Service
You did the right thing. It is such a larger picture than the chairs. I have given up my business. See my website.
I tried to teach students the values of Social Skills education and place them in jobs, but they couldn’t look up from their Blackberry’s long enough to know they were fired.
K
This reminds me of when the company I worked for was being acquired. We were in a meeting announcing the acquisition and the head of the new company was giving us a speech about how great it would be to work for him. In the middle of his presentation, he stopped talking to us so he could read a message on his Blackberry. That was the first sign that this wasn’t going to work out.
John,
Nothing like being appreciated from the start….Hope it was either just a “fluke” or you found something that worked out for you!
Karen,
I’m all for being connected etc – but not at the cost of customer service. Needless to say – we’re now looking elsewhere. As for your students – it’s sad that priorities are so skewed….
I probably would have left too! I sold furniture, and my customers always had my undivided attention. If we didn’t carry what the customer was looking for we had a good relationship with other stores in the area and referred customers to them, and they to us. That’s the way it should work.