Customer services - then and now
Over the last several months, I’ve noticed that whenever I walk into a local Subway Restaurant, I am greeted with “Welcome to Subway”. I have a similar experience in my local Kroger’s as employees will frequently greet me and ask if they can be of assistance. I was surprised the first few times, but have come to appreciate this change. In a time when I feel customer service seems to have lost its luster, I find this refreshing. Perhaps, there is a resurgence occurring as businesses try to separate themselves from their competition. Whatever the reason I am happy to see it.
I grew up in a small family owned business. My three brothers and I would all work in this business from very young ages and customer service was stressed to us from the beginning. You treated every person with respect. It did not matter if they were male or female, how old they were, or the color of their skin. Everyone was to be treated in kind and you would acknowledge them and provide them with the best service. Even today I still say “yes ma’am, no ma’am; yes sir, no sir”.
When I got my first job out of college, it would be at a hospital. Customer service would again be of paramount importance, only it would be about patient satisfaction. The training I had learned from working in my parents business would serve me well as a young social worker. Spending my days working in mental health with people from all walks of life; I knew each one was deserving of respect and in need of kindness and care. The only difference now was the type of services I provided. I had went from selling shoes and sporting goods to assisting people who needed anything and everything from a place to live to help paying their bills.
Customer service translates across all of our professions and it is not just about how we behave in our respective workplaces. It is about how we treat each other every day. My parents expected us to treat people well, not only as we worked within the family business, but in day to day life. My father taught us just as his father, also a businessman, had taught him. After my father had passed away, I had a conversation with his only brother, my Uncle Dick. I asked him if he thought my grandfather would be disappointed that I had become a Social Worker instead of staying in the family business. Uncle Dick did not hesitate in his response. He said “Your grandfather was about providing good service and taking care of people. Isn’t that what being a social worker is?” Wow, yes it is. I had not thought of it that way until my Uncle said that. I had spent a good part of my life trying so many business ventures in addition to being a social worker. Trying so hard to honor my roots. But, all along, I was doing that. My Uncle Dick has since passed away, but I will always be grateful for his words.
My life lessons would not just come from my father’s side of the family, but from my mothers’ as well. Her father was a butcher and was one of the truly great people in my life. We lost him too soon, but I learned so much from him as he loved and cared for people so well. My grandmother would work deep into her later years as she served children in a Catholic elementary school. Oh how she enjoyed preparing and serving their meals for them. She loved and cared for those children like she loved and cared for us. Those kids loved Lucy. She also taught myself and others about how to treat all people.
Over the last 18 months, I have been the recipient of less than great service from three different sources. It has been disheartening to me as I went into each situation expecting better than what I received. I chose each service based on how they had been rated by others and on the fact that they were each locally owned and operated. Despite good starts with each of them, the actual service itself would be mediocre at best. I could tell you specifics and share with you why I believe this less than great service happened, but I do not want to move away from the most important point. We must strive to give good service to each and every person. We will not be perfect, but we must do our best.
People will often tell me that they treat others the way they are treated. I think you treat others the way you want to be treated no matter how the other person might behave. Recently I was having a beverage and working on my computer in a coffee shop when I ran across a gentleman I did not know. As he came over beside me to look through the stack of newspapers, I noticed his sweatshirt had Manchester College on it. I smiled at him and commented that I liked his sweatshirt and had attended Manchester. He barely looked at me and responded, “frankly, I don’t give a rats ass. Just wanted something that keeps me warm.” I was taken back for a minute and said, “well, it looks like it does keep you warm.” He mumbled something else, picked up the stack of papers and left. Whether this man was having a bad day or a bad life, I cannot let him be in charge of how I treat him or anyone else. I cannot let that stop me from continuing to be kind to people. I will still always do my best. I may fall short sometimes, but it can’t be for lack of effort.
Like my parents and their parents before them, I choose to not be swayed by negativity, but instead to provide the best service and care possible. I’m with President Jimmy Carter who said, “My faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I am, whenever I can, for as long as I can with whatever I have to try to make a difference.”
I challenge all of you to provide your best service in your respective places of business. Every person deserves it.
Blessings,
Tammy