Good customer service becomes noticeable for two reasons: A company or brand can be known for amazing customer service and experience. Customers may notice the employees’ attitude, how easy they are to do business with and more. But sometimes they don’t, because it’s expected. However, over time, customers will notice that there are never problems. […]
Good customer service becomes noticeable for two reasons:
If you’ve ever been to a fancy steakhouse, you expect a higher price, but with that price comes the expectation of a good meal and a high level of service. The only way to exceed the expectation is to manage a mistake. Perfection in customer service is not always possible, but the way a mistake is handled can make up for imperfections.
My friend Tom Baldwin, former CEO of Morton’s The Steakhouse and Benihana, shared his definition of customer service: “Great customer service is mistakes handled well.” While there may be more to customer service than handling mistakes, this is a pretty good start. His point was that nobody should ever walk out of the restaurant unhappy.
Keep in mind that it takes more than fixing the problem. A steak that isn’t cooked to the customer’s liking can be fixed, but there is more to fixing a problem than just making it right. I’m not going to go into my simple five-step process for handling complaints, as I’ve written about it a number of times. However, I do want to emphasize three ideas:
Customers want a positive experience. They don’t want to complain, but when there is something to complain about, they want to know they can always count on you to make it right. And this may be most important. Mistakes handled well is not just fixing a problem. It’s about restoring the customer’s confidence that gets them to say, “I’ll be back!”
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.
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