This is the Second Most Expensive Phrase in Business

This article answers the question: What is the second most expensive phrase employees can say to a customer?  

Answer: The second most expensive phrase employees can say to a customer is “It’s company policy,” because it signals a lack of authority, flexibility, and willingness to help, which quickly frustrates customers and damages loyalty. 

Not long ago, I wrote about what may be the most expensive phrase employees can say to a customer: It’s not my department. When customers hear that, they know they won’t get the answer they want or a solution to their problem. At best, they will be transferred, told to talk to someone else, be forced to repeat their story, and experience other friction that makes customers wonder why they chose to do business with this company or brand. 

In that article, which I also turned into a video, I mentioned that the other phrase that could qualify as “most expensive” was: It’s company policy. I’ll admit, it was difficult to choose between the two. After doing a little Google research, I decided to go with It’s not my department, but at the end, you may remember I mentioned coming back soon with some commentary on this one. 

When customers hear an employee say, “It’s company policy,” what they are really hearing is: 

• “There’s nothing I can do.” 

• “I don’t have the authority to help you.” 

• “The rules matter more than you do.” 

Even if the policy makes legitimate sense, if the customer is upset, that line is not going to help make them happy. 

The problem is solved with three words: training, empowerment, and flexibility. Let’s break it down: 

• Training: You can’t expect employees to know what to do unless you teach them and follow up with coaching as needed. If you’ve hired the right person, you have an employee who wants to help. Give them the tools to do so. 

• Empowerment: Once you’ve trained employees, empower them to do their job. Don’t force them to ask permission to do something that feels right. I’ve written about the concept of One to Say Yes and Two to Say No, which is exactly what it sounds like. If it makes sense to say, “Yes,” to a customer, empower the employee to do so. Train them on how far they can go to make a customer happy. If the employee doesn’t know what to do or believes the answer should be “No,” then they can seek out a manager for help. And once the manager shows them what to do, they should never have to ask for help about this issue again. 

• Flexibility: This is what happens when you combine training with empowerment. You’ve created permission to make good customer-focused decisions.  

There are legitimate reasons you can’t say yes and have to stand behind company policy, which could include the law or regulatory requirements, but that doesn’t mean you use those three dreaded words: It’s company policy.  

Customers don’t care about your policies or your departments. They care about whether you help them. Policies should guide employees, not replace their judgment. When they are properly trained and empowered to help customers, that’s the customer-focused approach that customers love. There may be policies and rules that can’t be broken. It’s how you handle them that makes the difference.  

Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops at www.Hyken.com. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.