Customer Is Always Right? Right? WRONG! Here’s a Better Thought (book excert)

Here’s the guilty party – from Perfect Phrases For Customer Service

We need to address the single most popular false idea about customer service. No doubt you’ve heard the phrase, “The customer is always right.” It’s a great slogan, credited to H. Gordon Selfridge, who passed away in 1947. Unfortunately, it’s wrong and misleading.

Clearly the customer is not always right. Customers make unreasonable requests and sometimes have unreasonable expectations. Sometimes customers play fast and loose with the truth. Customers may not understand your company and what you can and can’t do for them.

Practically speaking, you can’t operate under the assumption that the customer is always right. You can’t give each customer what he or she asks for.

So, can we come up with a phrase or two that realistically describe how we should treat customers? Yes. Here are two short phrases that fit the bill.

• The customer always deserves to be treated as if he or she is important and his or her opinions, needs, and wants are worthy of listening to.
• The customer deserves to receive maximum effort on the part of those serving him or her, even when the customer’s expectations, wants, and needs may be impractical.

Since the customer isn’t “always right” and it’s often not possible to give the customer what he or she wants, what are the implications for customer service?