Last week I shared a personal experience my wife and I had with customer service gone wrong but rectified by an empathetic, caring manager. More than ever we need to realize the importance of merging good customer service with our products and services.

John Gerzema believes that consumers are the main driving force of the economy today, as they are becoming better organized, more attentive to each other, and more critical to products and services, including customer service. He has stated that “We can move from mindless consumption to mindful consumption.” 

I believe we already are with many of us are paying very close attention to the goods and services purchased and the customer care that accompanies them. Unfortunately most corporations have a customer care department that amounts to little more than an us/them mindset (“we’re in our ivory towers looking down at you!”). Their attitude is simply:

1. When you can, get it [customer service] over with.
2. If at all possible, evade responsibility.

Which means that when things go wrong, you’ll likely encounter a legalistic mentality that begins and ends with, “It’s out of our control.”

Anna Dolce, an entrepreneur and hospitality expert, demonstrates that the hospitality service, unfortunately, lacks hospitality. She says that “Service without hospitality becomes a transaction.” Too often personnel is just going through the motions with little true care of making customers comfortable. Introducing hospitality is what makes a business stand out.

Customer service is low hanging fruit, folks. Become mindful of your customers' expectations and treat them with hospitality.