Yesterday was a day of receiving consistently good service – from a variety of different people, in different places and different situations.  And a very pleasant day as a result.

Good or exceptional service isn’t rocket science but it does require a change in mindset.  Some of the key things yesterday that made a difference to the experiences are:

(1) People were smiling and coming across that they were generally interested, and they listened.  Even on the phone this makes a huge difference.  It’s about empathy and taking the time to fully understand the query at hand.

(2) They were all looking to see how they could help me.  This is something I read a great article about recently, where you should be thinking in any interaction with anyone else, “How can I help you?”.  Not how can they help me, or what do I want, but what can I do for the other person.

(3) Everyone was going the extra mile – without prompting or being asked for something else.  They were all looking to see what else they could do.

(4) They all knew what they were talking about and the services or products they offered or sold, and were passionate about them.

(5) And lastly they were all empowered to make decisions and do the job, and trusted to do so.

This last one is key and a lot of companies and businesses don’t do this and add process upon process around what should be a simple decision, for no real benefit or commercial reason.

Good service is so important in all businesses and so often overlooked or forgotten. It really was a great experience yesterday seeing it done so well and how it should be.

How important is good service to you as a provider and how do you ensure it is delivered?

And as the great Yoda himself said…