Good Old Customer Service- or NOT - a Case Study

You know I’m a stickler for customer service- excellent customer service. And, that I think its DEAD in most places today.

Here’s an example of what happened to me yesterday in one of my prize customer service observation centers- the United States Post Office.

I was in line with 6 other customers (note that I said “customers”). 2 long-term postal clerks were serving customers (I use “serving” very loosely here).

First Observation: a young man (customer) asks the clerk for a dollar and a half in quarters with his change. The clerk looks perturbed. The clerk gives the customer his change without the $1.50 in change. The customer asks politely again. The clerk says in a very defensive tone, “Look, there are three banks within this row. I’m not one of them.” The customer seems embarrassed and politely says, “Ok, sorry about that.”

Second Observation: (30 seconds after the one above) a woman (customer) is having a package weighed by the other clerk in the post office. The clerk asks the customer if she’s ready to ship it, as she was only inquiring about cost. The customer says yes. The clerk then offered a few other ways she could have mailed it. The customer was considering the options and said, “But you’ve already scanned it in haven’t you?” The clerk said, “Yes”. The customer paused. She finally said, “Can you void it so that I can mail it another way?” The clerk said, while rolling her eyes, “yes, I can.” As the customer walked over to another part of the office to examine package materials, the clerk said, out loud and loudly, “Count to 10! Count to 10! It’s been a long Day!”

Do I need to do a post-mortem on these dialogues and what went wrong? I don’t think so. My readers are intelligent enough to know these individuals shouldn’t be in their current positions without serious consultation with a manager. They wouldn’t be my employees- I can guarantee you that.

Do you know the correlation of customer service and repeating revenue? It’s huge. Customers will pay more for better service! Ironically, I understand the Postal Service is experiencing trouble with revenue. Is that a no-brainer? It’s not all due to the age of the internet. People are using Fed Ex and UPS like mad.

I know what you are saying, “Welcome back from your honeymoon Bride. The real world awaits.”

Thanks- Lisa (Mrs. Lisa Spahr)
At least I know I have job security in customer service training. Bring it on. 412.867.9991 Office Line