How To Get Good Customer Service

Have you ever noticed that some people seem to complain about the customer they get. It seems to be the same people who do not get good service. After nearly a year of hanging out in the retail environment, I think the people who get poor customer service don't help themselves out.

You have to remember that people who work in customer service are spending the majority of their time interacting with people. You can make it much easier for them to serve you by doing some simple things.

The first thing is to make sure the person who is going to serve you is ready to listen to you. This may sound simple but nearly everyday I see a potential customer start talking to either myself or a customer service associate while they are completing another task. Much of what retail associates do is not a difficult task however it does require some attention.

Before you start asking questions make sure you warm up the associate who is going to be serving you. A quick question about their day is all you need. It gives them a chance to situate themselves to serving you. 

If you have a good associate serving you, they will ask you some questions. Make sure you answer the questions. They are trying to understand what you want and make the appropriate recommendation. If the associate isn't understanding what you are describing, try a different approach. We all use language slightly differently.

Most of all, be pleasant. It sounds obvious but a lot of people seem to forget to be nice to people around you. We all prefer to deal with nice people and you will get better service if you are nice to the people trying to help you.

There you go. It's not hard to have a good shopping experience if you go about it properly.

Christmas Shopping

I am the most laid back Christmas shopper ever. I don't get wound up, I take my time as I know it will be busy. I roll with the punches. It may be because I am a Christmas buyer more than a Christmas shopper. I know what I want and go out and find it. Being this relaxed has allowed me to figure out when the busiest times are. There are a few factors that play into this but it seems to have some logic to it.

Week-ends and evenings are always busy. There are a lot of people who really only have time to shop at these times. If you can avoid these times it is best. Not only will you be less frustrated but you will make it easier for the people who can only really shop at these times.

If Christmas is late in the week, lets say a Thursday or a Friday, then school will be out for nearly a week before the big day. The Monday after school lets out will be really busy. A lot of people have the same thought. I am off during the day, it won't be as bad, I will get this done on Monday and enjoy the rest of the week. If yo can avoid that day it is probably to your benefit. Tuesday and Wednesday will not be nearly as busy and you probably can find parking much easier, and move about the shopping establishments much better.

Now, if Christmas is early in on a Monday then the week-end before is super crazy but some people identify this and get it done in the evenings the week before. However, if Christmas is a Tuesday then that Monday Christmas Eve has all the makings of the perfect storm. School has just let out on Friday so the Monday is busy from that and the Monday is the end of opportunity so the real die hard last minute folks are there too. To survive this encounter you must either be really patient or the Alpha Male.

Christmas Shopping is really a great sociological watching ground. It exposes the good and bad in everyone. You will see things you will not see any other time of the year.

I hope everyone is enjoying their holidays.