As we move towards, what we hope, are the latter stages of the Covid-19 pandemic, businesses have had to adapt in countless ways. Whether it be the layout of their shop, the shipping process they use or even the hours in which they operate – we’ve all had to change the way we run things.
Throughout all of this, however, there is one thing that has never changed – the customer always comes first. It’s the first thing you hear when you start a new job; one of the few constants between industries. Whether you work in a physical store or you sell your products on eCommerce sites, you always put the best interests of your customers first, it’s the golden rule.
But what are the ideas behind this? Why do we prioritise our customers out of instinct? You may think it’s all related to success and winning business, and while this does play a huge part in why we do what we do for our customers, it’s definitely not the entire reason.
A lot of what we do for our customers comes from human nature. As humans, our brain operates in a way that means we very often prioritise others over ourselves. You’ll have seen this many times in life, and almost certainly will have experienced it for yourself, whether it be with a family member or a friend or even a complete stranger – it’s just what we do. Remember that time you gave up your seat on the bus for someone? Yeah, exactly like that.
The same kind of theories apply when dealing with customers. We always want to make sure that the people who rely on our business for their products/services are happy, because we all know how a negative experience can affect the way we perceive something. Generally, at our core, we all like to make people happy, to put a smile on others’ faces, because it makes us happy in turn. When a customer is really satisfied with the service or product we have provided, it makes us feel good about ourselves and motivates us to do even more.
“The customer is always right” may sometimes sound like a massive cliché, but it really does hold value. The way a business treats its customers often reflects the business as a whole; the happier the customers, the happier the workplace, and a happier workplace usually means a more successful and dedicated workforce. It’s a knock on effect – the happier the first set of people are, the happier the rest of the chain becomes by default. This applies to all walks of life, but is certainly a key factor in how a business operates.
To reflect upon this, the prioritisation of customers’ needs is very important to everyone within a business. The last thing you want as an employee is an unhappy customer, and the last thing you want as an employer is unhappy staff. Keeping the customer as the focus is quite possibly the most important part of a service. So the next time you deal with a customer, just think to yourself, are you doing everything you can to make their experience as positive as possible?
For more information on this topic, try following this link: https://www.zendesk.co.uk/blog/the-customer-is-always-right/
From The Team @ Cloud9 x