The next commandment laid out in Shep Hyken’s Forbes article, The Ten Commandments of Superior Customer Service, “Thou Shalt Be Willing to Apologize Quickly”.
We all hate being wrong, especially when it means we’re not just incorrect but that we’ve actually aggrieved someone else. In the context of business, this may mean we’ve accidentally ordered the wrong part for a customer, or not realized a diner has been waiting to twenty minutes to be greeted, or one of a million other little oversights or errors that will inconvenience the customer.
As Hyken explains, “When you’re wrong, don’t just admit it, apologize. This isn’t a sign of weakness, but of strength.” And he’s right. There’s a bad instinct out there that we shouldn’t say sorry for something because admitting as much means you’re opening yourself up to responsibility. A server who is late visiting her table for the initial greet may be nervous that apologizing means drawing attention to the oversight, which might adversely affect her tip. But the truth is that most people respect it when you own up to a mistake. As Hyken further explains, “What happens after is what’s going to count. That’s when you fix what needs to be fixed.”
Even when there’s a situation completely out of your employees’ control, like if the warehouse was the one responsible for sending the wrong part, expressing an apology is still helpful: “It’s not admitting fault, but simply expressing that you feel sorry that they were inconvenienced.” As with everything we’ve discussed, customer service comes down to making that human connection, which tells customers that you actually care and that you’re interested in making sure they get the best outcome. Even the small gesture of acknowledging the problem is usually more than enough to diffuse any potential problem.
The instinct to apologize doesn’t come naturally to everyone: training is often necessary, as is the case with most sales and service skills to be frank. The Brandt Group offers premiere training seminars that will allow you to invest in your people the right way, and we’ve got world-class mystery shopping services to make sure your staff is executing at the level you expect. Reach out to us today to learn more.
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