So much of what we do is dependent on our interactions with other people and the services we receive from other people. Many of these interactions more recently have been replace with robot chats; on-line support; recorded messages to select number one for customer support or number two for technical support; emails; and quite honestly no access to a human being without selecting the correct combination of number selections on your phone, and maybe even a sixty minute hold-time.
Yet none of us can understand how we could let technology take over for in-person customer service? Often we want to blame it on finances, the thought of paying less humans to answer phone calls and resolve customer services issues seems attractive. But I wonder if it is more related to humans caring less, than the cost of paying a human being.
When was the last time you were disappointed with the customer service that you received? We have all experienced it; the lack of eye contact, turning their back to you, the lack of empathy in their voice, their unwillingness to listen to what you have to say, or offer any form of explanation or apology for what you are experiencing.
My experience today provoked me to focus on customer service in my blog. My negative experience today was with a large airline. I travel quite often and have had the opportunity to experience of sorts of customer service experiences. Today I experienced all of the above and more. I even had a gate agent put his hand up in my face and tell me he could not help me after a late arrival (after one in the morning on the west coast.)
By the time this gate agent finished with me I felt alone, abandoned, abused and angry; but most of all de-humanized. I found myself asking, how could a person responsible for customer satisfaction and my safety tell me he could not help me and leave me to fend for myself in a city foreign to me, after one in the morning.
So let’s call this gate agent “Tony”. Tony was basically abusive and neglectful to my basic needs and security. He left me to fend for myself to secure food, transportation, and shelter at one in the morning in a large and dangerous city. What do you think Tony was thinking? That he did not want to work that shift anyways? That he just wanted to be home with his family? I am not sure, but if he had just taken a moment to assist me, it would have changed everything.
Fortunately, this story has a good ending because when I called a large hotel chain at two in the morning, they were able to find me a room complimentary. Thanks to “Oscar” at the hotel help line, I was able to rest my head safely on a pillow by 3:30 am.
This experience led me to compare Tony and Oscar, and ask how could my experience be so different with two people in the same business of customer service at the same time of the night (or morning)? It is my opinion that you just need to care. I believe that some people get satisfaction from making other people feel good, bringing a smile to their face, or helping them to feel better, maybe even happier.
This story ended on a really good note, when the very next day I personally sought out the director of customer service for that airline on-site at the same airport as the night (ir morning) before. Let’s call this person “Donald”. Donald sat with me for over an hour. He first worked to resolve my specific travel questions regarding flight options and checked luggage; next he offered explanations for what happened (but not excuses); after that he offered restitution for the unexpected expenses I was forced to incur the night before. Finally, and most importantly Donald offered an a listening ear and an apology. When I first told Donald my story from the middle of the night, I was in tears as I sat in the same exact terminal that I was abandoned in the night prior. By the end of my interaction with Donald, I was hugging him at the gate as I boarded an earlier departure than originally planned. Thanks to Donald’s creative problem solving to find me better flight options my opinions of this airline shifted. Donald even went as far as to call and check that my luggage would be waiting for me at my final destination, and call me when I landed to insure that I arrived safely.
I learned so many lessons from this night when I was left alone in the airport. First I learned from my bad experience with Tony, that I would never do what he did to me to anyone. I would always take the time to listen and care. But more importantly I learned from Donald and Oscar, to take the time to listen to all of the issues, mitigate and resolve what you can, don’t make excuses, and acknowledge and apologize for those issues which you can not alter.
The next time you have someone in need of your attention or customer service, take a moment to listen, hear, and process what they are telling you. Be kind and care, it does not take any additional time or energy, and you may actually get a hug at the end of the day. Now wouldn’t that make you feel good?