Kindness in Customer Service

"Always be a little kinder than necessary."
― James M. Barrie

As do many of us, I spend a few minutes (if not longer) every day following up on things that need to get done.  For example, there was an estimate that I was supposed to receive last Friday, but I haven't yet.  There was a delivery that was supposed to arrive yesterday, but won't until later this week.  There were some forms that I requested nearly two weeks ago that I was going to receive a call about in a couple of days, but didn't ...  Just the regular stuff.

So imagine my surprise when first thing yesterday morning, I received an e-mail from someone who was handling some paperwork for me.  The transaction was supposed to be completed today, but instead, it was done yesterday, so she e-mailed me right away to let me know.  It was such a pleasant surprise for someone to proactively contact me with news that what I needed had not only been accomplished, but also ahead of schedule!  I truly appreciated her kindness and thanked her right away.  I have to add that I should not have been surprised as this young woman excels at customer service, but still, I was nearly shocked.

In a TIME article last month on what makes for great customer service, one consultant says, "Expectations of what is timely are really changing."  The article states that, "If you can't deliver what customers want when they want it, they'll move on rather than waste their time."

Expectations are key with people in general, but certainly with customers.  Years ago, I realized that with expectations and deadlines, you either have to meet them or renegotiate them.  And I know that many people in businesses find themselves besieged by clients wanting their matters taken care of and it can feel as though one is behind the eight ball.  But if our approach to customer service is to be kinder than necessary -- especially in terms of communications and deliverables, we may find that not only are we being kind to the client (and building customer loyalty), but also we make life more pleasant for ourselves.  Kindness usually works that way.