Ten Commandments Customer Service

Ten Commandments of Customer Service
by Pat Croce

1. Say Hello and Goodbye
   Be sure to get your customers coming and going by greeting them with a hearty “hello” and a well meant “goodbye.” And it doesn’t have to just be customers or clients; offering everyone you encounter a hello and goodbye is a common courtesy. You make a difference in another’s day, and the best part, you feel great!

2. Use First Names
   Our name is the first thing that separates us from everyone else and makes us an individual. When you use a first name, you personalize your experiences with people and make them feel important. Every day, call those first names out loud!

3. Listen, Listen, Listen
   People who talk, talk, talk may monopolize the conversation. But it’s the people who listen, listen, listen – and then ask strategic questions – that actually control the conversation. Never underestimate the power of silence, especially when negotiating.
4. Communicate Clearly
   There’s nothing so simple that someone can’t misunderstand it. Making a clear and full explanation is like going around closing windows – windows that might otherwise be left open to misunderstanding. It takes a measure of discipline to achieve, but it’s an important habit to cultivate.

5. Be Neat, Clean, and Fit
   People respond more readily to someone who takes an obvious pride in their appearance and environment. This attitude automatically establishes you as a person who can be trusted and an authority who should be respected.

6. Be Prompt and Professional
   Being habitually late creates the impression of being unreliable. Being on time is a habit, nothing more. It requires a little organization, a little discipline, and a little planning.

7. Be Positive
   Life has a way of becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you always expect the worst, then you’ll hardly ever be disappointed. We are all capable of starting out in a positive frame of mind. But to be able to sustain that through failure upon failure…that is the true measure of a positive attitude.

8. Extend Compliments
   Heartfelt praise elevates a person’s spirits, leaves them feeling better about themselves, and will often result in them having an encouraging word for someone else.

9. Have Fun
   A good sense of humor makes other good things possible – a positive attitude, passion, pride, productivity, a sense of well-being, and compassion for others.

10. Do It Now!
    If you do not immediately implement what you learn today, then the world will have changed by tomorrow and you will be two steps behind.