Within a 24 hour period, I encountered 3 incidents of bad customer service, from three different businesses. Each of them left a foul taste in my mouth and made me feel devalued as a customer.

One incident was a phone conversation, the person on the other end of the phone had no interest in answering any of my questions and just told me to look at the website. When I said that I needed further information as the website said to call, they were not helpful at all and would not answer my simple questions about their product that I needed to find out prior to making a purchase. He was clearly were having a bad day and began to talk in an aggressive tone. Guess what I did not make my purchase with this business and ended that conversation.

Throughout my career, I have always strived to deliver good customer service, from when I was a checkout operator at the local store, right through to a business owner. I think it’s important to respect and value customers because if you don’t they won’t come back.

I’m not sure if people just don’t care any more, or they are too busy to go the extra mile, but a smile doesn’t cost anything. A friendly voice at the end of the phone line goes a long way.

There are so many businesses out there and competition is fierce. If you aren’t going to deliver good customer service, people will go elsewhere. Based on my recent experience if you are a business delivering great customer service, you are a minority, keep it up and you will reap the rewards.

Improving the customer experience doesn’t need to be difficult or expensive, it’s just a matter of making them feel loved and meeting their expectations.