Bad Customer Service

It seems like rocket science to many small businesses in Nairobi. Customer service is not always easy to get, though at the rate some businesses give it you would think it is in short supply.

Visiting a local franchise restaurant in town the other day, I sat for about 20minutes before my waitress even realised I was there. I knew right off the bat that there was going to be no tip and that keeping my cool would be an uphill task from there on out.

What’s challenging in getting staff to offer your customers good service? I mean I love the restaurant but now I know that I will most likely never return to that branch.

Bad customer service impacts negatively on your business, so it is time for you to make sure that you have staff who care about the level of service that they are offering your customers. It’s easy to do, it is not rocket science, and they just need to understand that customer is king, as the adage goes. The interaction your staff have on a daily basis with your customers means it is one of those things that should be non negotiable. Obviously you cannot be there to interact personally with every customer you have so the option is to simply train your employees on how to handle customers.

When you give customers good service, they will sing about it all they can, non stop, to everyone and above all they won’t shy away at recommending you to others. Word of mouth spreads like wild fire, negative word of mouth spreads even faster and kills your brand. Rather, kills the brand that you are trying to build.
Why should it take more than one day to respond to a customer query online? By the time some companies out there have responded to a customer email complaint or query, you as the customer have even forgotten what it is you were complaining about or why for that matter. Same case goes to returning a phone call, you will even be lucky to get called back so never hold your breath on that one.

It’s up to you to know where you want your organisation to go to, up and away or down to the dogs. Really, it is not rocket science, pay attention to your customer service.

Naomi Kinyanjui is an aspiring enterpreneur, a Procurement Specialist by profession with a passion for life, writing and making a difference. Follow her on Procurement Mentality 101 blog where the talk is all about supply chain and procurement and maintaining professionalism in such a controversial field.