Why “the customer is always right” is bad for business - and what you should do instead
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Customer is Always Right Culture
- For years the retail mantra given to frontline workers has been“The customer is always right … which means you are wrong.” Take the abuse.
- People who know that their boss will side with the customer, even when that customer is rude or wrong, quickly lose trust in leadership.
- Eroding trust further by prioritizing the most outrageous customer demands over the mental health of your people is a fast way to drive them out the door. No one wants to work a demeaning, demanding job where their manager doesn’t trust their judgment.
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What can be done right?
- Don’t minimize how your employees feel
- Empower your people to say no—politely to customers
- Focus on metrics that support long-term growth
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Don’t minimize how your employees feel
- if an employee tells you about an upsetting interaction with a customer, avoid minimizing their feelings by calling it “a little annoying” or “part of the job.”
- Much better is to reflect your employee’s emotions back to them, saying something like “I understand that you’re upset this happened, and rightfully so—no one should be allowed to take their emotions out on you like that."
- And then go a step further: "Here’s what I’m going to do to prevent this from happening again.”
- Underestimating someone’s feelings tends to be far costlier than overestimating them.
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Empower your people to say no—politely to customers
- Rather than forcing your people to say yes to a series of one-off, time-consuming requests, train them on how to clearly and kindly explain why they can’t accommodate certain asks.
- Sometimes doing what’s best for the long-term health of your company means parting ways with a customer that doesn’t match your vision and values—and making room for the customers that do.
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Focus on metrics that support long-term growth
- Define your company’s employee-focused metrics for success, and then track them.
- How are managers improving, as rated by their direct reports?
- Do your people see opportunities for growth? Do they plan to stick around?
- Studies show that employee satisfaction and retention rates are two of the best indicators of a company’s long-term health—and overall customer satisfaction.
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IDEAS CURATED BY
CURATOR'S NOTE
serving customers should not be at the cost of losing your top talent...
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Gautam jayasurya's ideas are part of this journey:
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