Is Customer Service A Lost Art?

Is your level of service a 10?

I had an experience the other day that really made me wonder. I was a bit confused and at the same time surprised. And, I played along to humor the person I was talking with.

Here’s the story.

I took my car into the dealer for something very basic. I could’ve received the service just about anywhere but since the dealer was close and they always wash the car when it’s in for service I decided to take it there. After all, a nicely washed car is a plus.

I wanted to get my tires rotated. Since my car is basically still new with just under 10000 miles on it this was the first time I was there for service.

The service person took my information, filled out the necessary paperwork for me to sign to authorize the work and then informed me of the survey I’d be receiving.

He told me that I would be getting a customer satisfaction survey for the work performed. No big deal I thought. He then proceeded to tell me that the best possible response on the questions was a 10. That their boss wants them to get all 10′s on their surveys so it looks good on them and with a little wink he says…” and then I can keep working here”.

I chuckled but he then gives me a piece of paper to initial that says he informed me about the survey and in handwriting circled a 10 next to where I was to initial. As I walked over to the customer waiting area I thought to myself…that was kind of weird.

In about an hour my tires got rotated, my car was washed and I was back on the road. So far so good. Until…

About 4 or 5 miles down the road I remembered this little charade we played with the survey… remembering that only a 10 was an acceptable answer. I overlooked the fact that they left the paper floor matt in my car and the service tag for me to throw away.

I also let go of the fact that a REALLY REALLY short person drove my car and left the seat moved all the way up in the forward position. The only way I could get in was to sit on the edge of the seat sideways and slid it back.

The kicker that made me laugh at the absurd nature of this whole fiasco was that I now had a warning light on that said to check my tires. That only meant one thing… Yup, another trip back to the dealer to have it checked out!

As I expected, it wasn’t anything to be worried about. They just forgot to reset the warning indicator which just happens to come on after doing the work. The service person said, ” come on let’s take a ride and I’ll show you how to reset it. We drove for about 5 miles while he attempted twice to get it reset. He apologized for the trash left in my car and laughed about my seat being so close saying they have cute little girls move the cars.

The whole time we’re driving around trying to reset the warning light I’m wondering, why wasn’t this done in the first place when you had my car? Why should I have to bring it back to you and then go ride around for 15 minutes while you attempt to reset the warning indicator? Was this part of their “10” service?

So what do you think? Was their service a 10? Do you think they really care what their customers experience by asking them to give them all 10′s before they even start to work on your car? Do you think they want to know where they fall down in their expectations so that they can do something to correct it for the next customer?

I’m guessing that in this BIG business that a lot of the people working there are just going through the motions. They’re doing what they’re told to do in hopes that it will satisfy somebody higher up the food chain and they can keep their job another day. Customer Service can be a huge can of worms. It’s just about a lost art.

My point here is not to point out the obvious lack of service that warrants a 10 on the performance scale. The point is, how does this example play out in your business?

Are you providing a level of service that’s a 10? Are you communicating with your clients and customers, your associates, and really listening to what they have to say or are you just paying them lip service? Do you go out of the way to make a wrong…right?

Take a look around. Use this situation to see how it applies to your business and see if you can learn from it. I’d love to know your thoughts.

As always, I’d appreciate it if you would share this with your friends and followers on Facebook and Twitter. Let’s bring the level of customer service back to a 10 without having to ask for it!

Until next time, go out and Live Your Best Life!

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