Author Archives: Shep Hyken

About Shep Hyken

Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, keynote speaker, and New York Times, bestselling business author. For information on The Customer Focus™ customer service training programs, go to www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken

Investments That Make Your Company More Productive, Efficient and Customer-Friendly

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Investments That Make Your Company More Productive, Efficient and Customer-Friendly

GUEST POST from Shep Hyken

What company doesn’t want to be more productive, efficient, and customer-friendly? (That’s a rhetorical question.) Isn’t this what every leader wants? Yet recent survey findings from Call Centre Helper an inconsistency in how organizations pursue these goals. This inconsistency can make or break their customer experience strategy. And if they fail their customers, their company may fail, as well.

The Call Centre Helper numbers tell the story. When asked where organizations can get maximum value for money while improving customer experience, a staggering 40% pointed to self-service solutions. Personalization came in a distant second at 18%, followed by productivity tools (12%). And despite years of improvement in AI, chatbots only received 8% of the vote.

In my own 2025 customer service and CX research of over 1,000 U.S. consumers, 68% still prefer the phone as their first choice for customer support, followed by online chat with a live agent at 55%. This creates what I call the customer experience investment paradox, where companies are pushing their investment into self-service tools while customers continue to value human-to-human interactions with live support agents.

The Self-Service Revolution is Real

In spite of the preference for phone support, the digital self-service revolution is real and becoming more important to companies. While the phone is still king, my research found that 34% of customers stopped doing business with a company because self-service options weren’t offered. That’s a third of your potential customers. Even if they prefer the phone, they want the option of doing it themselves.

There are some digital rockstar brands like Amazon and Uber, which have trained customers to expect instant and easy experiences. When customers can order groceries, stream entertainment, or hail a ride with a few taps of their mobile screen, they naturally expect similar experiences with every brand they encounter.

This makes the case for self-service, in spite of the customer’s desire to make a phone call. When the right solution is provided, the benefits to the company are big in the form of reduced operational costs and an improved customer experience. When executed well, self-service allows customers to resolve simple issues instantly, freeing up human agents to take on complex problems that require expertise and empathy.

That said, I regularly caution my clients that going “all in” on self-service without considering the larger customer journey could be a mistake. The keywords to consider are “when executed well.” Poorly implemented self-service creates frustrated customers who eventually demand human assistance anyway, often at a higher cost to resolve, and not to mention the bad will caused by the frustration.

Personalization: A Competitive Differentiator

The 18% investment in improving personalization shows that companies are understanding the importance of creating the personalized experience. My research reveals that 79% of consumers consider a personalized experience to be important.

Consumers are still being bombarded with generic messages from the companies they do business with that often leave them asking, “Why is this company sending this to me?” The result is customers disengage and often move on. As personalization technology improves (dramatically), analytics on a customer’s buying habits, frequency, past products purchased, and more can be incorporated into messaging and customer support experiences that have customers saying, “This company knows me.”

Smart companies use customer data to do more than personalize marketing messages and improve customer support. The data allows companies to anticipate needs, make recommendations for other products and services, and improve the overall customer experience.

The Relevance of the Human Connection

Despite a focus on digital investment, the human-to-human connection cannot be ignored. The fact that 68% of customers still prefer the phone confirms that self-service and chatbots may not be enough. Customers still want to talk to a live human being, especially about complex problems or major complaints.

However, the technology is getting better, and customers are becoming more confident with self-service solutions, which include chatbots. Also, as Gen Zs and younger Millennials become financially secure, they become a major force in the economy. They are the ones becoming I predict the 68% number will go lower for two reasons:

And age makes a difference, or does it? While my research finds that 82% of Baby Boomers prefer the phone, you can’t ignore that 52% of Gen Zs prefer it as well. At the same time, I predict that 68% of customers preferring the phone will go down for at least two reasons. First, the technology is getting better, and customers are becoming more confident with self-service solutions, which include improved chatbots. Second, Gen Zs and younger Millennials, who are more comfortable with technology, are becoming financially secure. The result is that they will be a major force in the economy.

Productivity and Efficiency

The 12% investment into productivity is about efficiency and optimizing the workforce. Some companies believe that being more efficient means replacing the workforce with technology. That’s a dangerous move for reasons and information already shared in this article. However, rather than saving money by eliminating employees, companies can make employees more productive. Imagine technology that saves employees 20% of their workday by eliminating menial tasks or answering basic questions that AI and chatbots can respond to. In turn, they use that time to focus on more important issues and tasks.

Many companies view chatbots as an investment in productivity, however according to the Call Centre Helper findings, companies are investing less than 8% in this powerful tool. My take on this is that companies have been let down by AI-fueled chatbots that make mistakes and hallucinate. That’s yesterday’s chatbot technology. Today, chatbots are far better than they were just a year ago. And if you’re worried about chatbots giving bad information to customers, don’t think that customers haven’t had the same experience with human support.

Final Words

The most successful companies I work with aren’t choosing between digital efficiency and human connection. They’re creating integrated experiences that deliver both. They use self-service for simple, routine interactions while ensuring a seamless hand-off to a human when needed. They leverage personalization to anticipate customers’ needs and build relationships. They invest in tools that enhance rather than replace human connection, achieving what every leader wants: a business that’s more productive, efficient, and loved by its customers.

This article was originally published on Forbes.com.

Image Credit: Gemini

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The Customer Confidence Score™ (CCS)

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The Customer Confidence Score™ (CCS)

GUEST POST from Shep Hyken

Recently, I wrote about a customer trust survey. The feedback was amazing, which compelled me to take this a step further. After more writing and additional research, I recognized the need for more attention to a metric that measures a customer’s trust, which will directly correlate with customer satisfaction levels, loyalty, and any metric that measures what keeps customers or drives them away.

Merriam-Webster defines trust as an assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something. One in which confidence is placed.

One can’t ignore that the word confidence is part of the definition! They are very closely linked. We might ask something similar to, “Which came first, the chicken or the egg?” The question would be, “Which comes first, confidence or trust?”

Or, put another way: Does more trust lead to higher confidence, or does a higher level of confidence lead to more trust?

Or does it really matter? If you have both, you win. My take is that trust leads to confidence. Customers show confidence in your company through repeat business and referrals. That’s how they express their trust.

And that is why I’m officially announcing to you, our subscribers, readers, and viewers, a name to describe the trust questions I recently covered. I call it the Customer Confidence Score™ (CCS), another question to add to the survey questions you use to measure customer satisfaction (CSAT) and Net Promoter Score (NPS). Here’s an anchor question from my recent article on trust surveys:

On a scale of 1-10, how much do you trust that we will always do what’s right for you as our customer?

If your customer doesn’t give you a perfect 10 on this question, there are trust issues. Customers either fully trust you, or they don’t. And obviously, the lower the score, the less likely you’ll see them return. But a score alone is just a number. The real insight comes when you ask your customers why they gave you that score. The answer is your opportunity to resolve trust issues and improve the likelihood they will return.

The Customer Confidence Score™ is the result of surveying for trust, but it’s more than just another metric. It doesn’t replace CSAT or NPS. It completes them by measuring the foundation they are built on: trust. Without trust, a high CSAT or NPS score may be temporary at best. Measure CCS consistently, act on the insights, and you’ll build the kind of confidence and loyalty that get customers to say, “I’ll be back!”

Image Credit: Pexels

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You Chose the Top 10 Customer Service Brands

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You Chose the Top 10 Customer Service Brands

GUEST POST from Shep Hyken

We live in a world where 76% of customers say they will switch to a competitor if they know they will receive a better customer experience. Understanding which brands consistently win their customers’ hearts and wallets and why isn’t just interesting—it’s essential knowledge that will help you stay competitive.

Each year I survey more than 1,000 U.S. consumers for my annual customer service and CX research. The “audience” mirrors the U.S. population demographics for age, gender, ethnicity, geography and more. We learn about their likes, dislikes, expectations and more when it comes to customer service and customer experience (CX). One of my favorite questions to ask each year is, “When you think of customer service, what are your favorite companies?”

We ask each person to name their three favorites. Many of these brands you would expect to be on this list. For the research report, we listed the top 25 brands. For this article, I’m sharing the top 10. In addition to listing the brands, I’ve shared a few sentences about why these brands are loved by consumers. These lessons show us what our customers want, not just from these brands, but from any brand or company, including yours.

And here’s a disclaimer. This is a “people’s choice” list. You may or may not agree with the choices, but you can’t argue with the numbers. Furthermore, many of these brands have shown up on the list year after year.

So, with no further ado, let’s start with No. 10 and work our way to No. 1 for 2025!

No. 10 – Home Depot

Customers appreciate the friendly service and help from employees who are knowledgeable about tools, paint and building supplies. Home Depot customers appreciate how employees guide them to the right solution and sometimes even share helpful tips. Here’s my tip, based on personal experience. When you have a project, look for an older employee. They often have the experience and wisdom you’re looking for. The lesson: Friendly employees empowered with knowledge create confidence for customers, and confidence builds loyalty.

No. 9 – AT&T

Customers value AT&T’s nationwide coverage, international packages and helpful support, whether in stores or over the phone. Many mention the responsiveness of employees who work to resolve issues quickly. The lesson: In a competitive industry, fast response and reducing friction can win over customers.

No. 8 – Verizon

“Can you hear me now?” Those five words have been part of Verizon’s marketing campaign since the early 2000s. It means Verizon customers can trust its products. In addition, it has reliable service and knowledgeable support teams. Its staff consistently provides clear answers and helps customers make sense of plans, devices and upgrades. The lesson: Reliability plus clarity equals trust, and trust creates the confidence that brings customers back.

No. 7 – Google

I did a Google search and asked, “How many Google searches are there per day? The answer is more than 13 billion! While Google is known for its search engine, it also has many products such as Gmail, YouTube, Google Maps and many others. While much of the experience is self-service, the technology itself delivers convenience that feels effortless. The lesson: Sometimes the best service is making things so easy that customers don’t even need to ask for help.

No. 6 – Costco

Customers love the value (low prices) and quality that Costco delivers through its membership program with generous return policies and an in-store experience that includes friendly and helpful employees. They’ve built a reputation for standing behind what they sell. The lesson: Customer-friendly policies send a powerful message: we’ve got your back.

No. 5 – Chick-fil-A

“It’s my pleasure!” is the phrase the brand’s founder, Truett Cathy, asked employees to use instead of “You’re welcome.” It symbolizes commitment to hospitality. Customers consistently rave about the friendliness of its employees. Even though it is considered to be a fast-food restaurant, it has proven that consistently friendly service—not to mention delicious chicken—wins the hearts of customers. The lesson: A smile and a genuine expression of “my pleasure” can transform ordinary transactions into extraordinary experiences.

No. 4 – Apple

Customers value not only the products but also the support, especially through the Genius Bar and the knowledgeable employees at its retail stores. Employees are trained to explain, teach and solve problems in a way that makes technology approachable. The lesson: Knowledgeable employees who can make the complicated simple remove customers’ fears and replace them with confidence.

No. 3 – Target

Customers want a clean shopping environment with employees who are helpful and approachable. The brand even refers to its customers as guests. That, combined with smooth checkouts and easy returns, is why Target ranks high. The recent news about the DEI rollback can’t be ignored, but Target recognizes this, and its new CEO has announced how they plan to win back customers. The lesson: Customers appreciate friendly employees, an easy shopping experience and convenience in the form of traditional shopping, curbside pickup and same-day delivery options.

No. 2 – Walmart

Customers love the convenience of thousands of locations and low prices. Approximately 90% of Americans live within 10 miles of a Walmart store. That’s convenience, and when you combine that with low prices, you have a winning combination. While you may not find an employee in every aisle (one of the ways Walmart keeps prices down), when you do interact with Walmart employees, they are friendly and helpful. The lesson: Low prices get customers in the door, but an overall positive customer experience that includes friendly employees helps bring customers back.

No. 1 – Amazon

It should not be a surprise that Amazon is ranked No. 1. Often, in my customer service keynote speech, I ask the audience to yell out their favorite company to do business with. I hear Amazon more than any other. Customers love its unmatched convenience. It is open 24/7, has fast delivery and easy returns. It is the ultimate company when it comes to removing friction from the buying experience. The lesson: Easy wins. Make doing business with your company simple, fast and reliable, and customers will reward you with repeat business and loyalty.

Final Words

You may or may not agree with the brands on this list. I was even surprised that a couple of them ended up in the top 10, but this wasn’t my list. It’s a people’s choice list. My comments about each of these brands are based on research, personal experience and informed opinion. Feel free to share your comments, as well as your opinion of other companies you would add to the list.

This article was originally published on Forbes.com.

Image Credit: Shep Hyken

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Turning the Customer Experience Trifecta into a Sure Thing

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Turning the Customer Experience Trifecta into a Sure Thing

GUEST POST from Shep Hyken

If you go to the horse race, you can place a bet known as the trifecta. This is where you correctly predict which horses will finish first, second, and third, and in the specific order. The payout is typically big because, while it’s simple in theory and easy to explain, it is a hard bet to win.

Here’s a bet you can always win: taking care of your customers. And when you do it right, you hit the trifecta:

First, they come back.
Second, customers who come back will typically spend more every time.
Third, customers who come back also recommend you. We love it when customers do our advertising and marketing for us.

So, how can we define taking care of your customers? Here’s a simple definition:

Taking care of your customers means you consistently deliver on what they expect, and do it in a way that’s easy, respectful, and reliable every time.

So, let’s break down the important words within this definition:

Consistently: The experience must be predictable and consistent. Consistency creates confidence. Confidence creates trust, and that leads to repeat business, and ideally and ultimately, customer loyalty.
Expect: Customers want you to meet their expectations. If you consistently – there’s that word again – meet those expectations, you don’t leave your customers hoping for more. And once in a while, you can go “above and beyond” or “over the top” when the opportunity presents itself.
Easy: This is about convenience. Customers love doing business with a company or brand that is easy and convenient. I wrote an entire book on this one, The Amazement Revolution.
Respectful: In addition to treating customers with respect, also respect their time. Wasting someone’s time is a sign of disrespect.
Reliable: This goes along with consistency and expectations. The product must do what the customer paid for it to do. No matter how good the service is, if the product doesn’t work, even the friendliest customer service won’t get customers to come back.

When a customer chooses to do business with you, there’s an implied agreement. They give you money in exchange for a product or service, and they expect you to take care of them as I’ve defined it. It may seem like common sense, and it is, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to implement. You need all employees on board with this simple concept. Everyone must understand how they contribute to the concept of taking care of the customer. Do that, and you’re not gambling. You’re betting on a sure thing. You’ll hit the trifecta!

Image Credit: Pexels

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This One Thing Could Cost You 1/3 of Your Customers

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This One Thing Could Cost You 1/3 of Your Customers

GUEST POST from Shep Hyken

If your customers reach out to you for customer support or for problems to be resolved, this is must-have information. In my annual customer experience research, we asked more than 1,000 U.S. consumers if they had ever stopped doing business with a company or brand because self-service options were not provided. Thirty-four percent said yes, which means:

Not offering self-service options for customer support could cost you one-third of your customers.

Age makes a difference. When you break it down by generations, more than twice as many Gen-Z customers (43%) than Baby Boomers (20%) have stopped doing business with a company because it didn’t offer self-service options for customer support.

Traditional Customer Support

The majority of all customers (68%) prefer the phone to self-service options. While the phone may be the first choice, it does have its drawbacks. Often, customers experience wait times. While the friendly recorded message may indicate the customer’s call “is very important,” a long wait time sends a different message. Sometimes customers become frustrated with being transferred, having to repeat their story to multiple customer support agents, language barriers and more.

Self-Service Options

Self-service customer support options are available to customers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. They typically handle simple questions and problems, and in some cases, are interactive, allowing customers to complete simple transactions. Customers using self-service appreciate how quickly they can get answers to questions and get their problems resolved without wait times and the hassle of authentication procedures that customers view as time wasters. Some of these options include:

Frequently Asked Questions: This is typically on a website and provides brief answers or articles related to the most common customer inquiries.
Video Tutorials: These are often found on a website, and many companies and brands also host these videos on YouTube, which means that they are potentially searchable by using Google to ask the question.
Interactive Voice Response (IVR) Systems: This is a phone-based automated system that allows customers to navigate menu options to find simple answers or complete easy transactions.
AI-Fueled Chatbots: Similar to traditional IVR systems (but usually better), chatbots can message back and forth with customers. With the latest ChatGPT-type technology, it can seem as if you’re communicating with a human.
Customer Portals: Access on a company’s website allows customers to log in and check orders, make payments, set appointments and much more.
Mobile Apps: If a customer is willing to download the company’s app on their mobile phone/device, they may have access to an easier experience that provides many or all of the above options.

A warning: Just because some customers are demanding self-service options doesn’t mean they won’t be as frustrated (or even more) than with traditional phone support. If they don’t get their answers or you waste their time, they won’t be happy. For example, even though 39% of customers would rather clean a toilet than contact live customer support, 76% say they have been trapped in an automated menu system (IVR) and repeatedly screamed into the phone, “Agent” or “Representative,” and eventually hung up out of frustration. While these findings may seem funny, there’s a lot of truth in humor.

Demand For Self-Service Increases

In 2025, 34% of customers demand that companies provide self-service options or they will seek out a competitor, up from 26% in 2024. That’s a 30% increase. If the trend continues at that pace, we’re less than two years away from more than half of customers walking away because of the lack of self-service options.

Final Words

Self-service is about convenience, and customers love convenience. In 2025, 91% of customers said convenience is important to them, and 73% are willing to pay more if the experience is more convenient. Self-service options, when done right, deliver exactly that: convenience. They give customers control, save time and are available 24/7. Companies that provide excellent self-service can earn customer loyalty by proving they respect their customers’ time and preferences.

But, self-service options aren’t enough. Not every question or problem can be handled through self-service, which is why the best companies provide a blend. A powerful self-service option allows customers to easily and seamlessly transfer to a live agent, and rather than forcing the customer to start over, the agent can see why the customer is contacting support.

The companies that win in the future won’t be those that choose between self-service and human support. They’ll be the ones that blend both to create a customer support experience that makes customers say, “I’ll be back!”

Image Credit: Google Gemini

This article was originally published on Forbes.com.

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What You Can Do to Make Customers Love You

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The One Thing Netflix, Zappos and Salesforce Do to Get Customers to Love Them

What You Can Do to Make Customers Love You

GUEST POST from Shep Hyken

Personalization used to be about recognizing a customer who’s done business with you before. Just recognizing them and using their name created the feeling of a personalized experience. Earlier this year, I wrote Personalization Is More Than Using A Customer’s Name. While using the customer’s name is still important, over time, that experience morphed into much more. It is name recognition, combined with a knowledge of how you have marketed to them, sold to them and supported them, which makes them feel like you know them, not just recognize them.

My annual customer experience research found that nearly eight out of 10 customers (79%) in the U.S. feel a personalized experience is important. Twilio Segment’s State of Personalization Report found that “89% of leaders believe personalization is crucial to their businesses’ success in the next three years.”

No Longer a Trend, Personalization Is a Competitive Advantage

Customer service has evolved with how we do business. What was once a nice-to-have feature has become table stakes for success. Companies that don’t personalize risk being left behind by competitors that do.

Creating Personalized and Customized Experiences Online

Artificial intelligence (AI) has made it possible to analyze customer data faster and easier than ever before. This means we can use real-time information to turn routine transactions into memorable experiences that feel customized just for that customer.

For example, Netflix uses AI to analyze viewing habits, time of day preferences and even how long someone watches to make movie and TV show suggestions, creating a very personalized experience.

Zappos.com calls itself a service company that just happens to sell shoes. It is an online retailer that offers award-winning live customer support. They create WOW experiences that draw customers in and keep them coming back. Personalization comes in the form of recognizing returning customers and making spot-on recommendations.

Personalization and customization go beyond traditional consumer-facing businesses. A California-based firm, DK Law serves a diverse group of clients that speak English, Spanish and Korean. One might think that having lawyers who speak the different languages of their clients and have similar cultural backgrounds would be all that’s needed to create a personalized experience for the firm’s clients, but they didn’t stop there. They built an online presence with multiple website entry points that cater to their clients’ diverse backgrounds, creating a sense of cultural comfort and understanding. The result is higher trust and better communication in a traditionally impersonal environment, such as injury law.

In the B2B world, the ability to personalize and customize a solution can win over customers. Salesforce uses AI to analyze how each company (customer) uses its software, tracking which features teams use most and what challenges they face. Based on the data, Salesforce provides personalized dashboards, suggests training modules and delivers targeted suggestions to help each business maximize its investment.

Final Words

A successful personalization strategy will combine technology with human insight. The goal is to gather the right data about each customer and understand them well enough to create an experience that seems deeply personalized. The businesses that master the balance between using AI to gather insights while maintaining the human touch will be the ones customers choose to return to.

Personalization has evolved from a nice surprise to an expected standard. Companies that invest in truly knowing their customers and understanding their buying habits will keep those customers. And provided the overall customer experience meets the customer’s expectations, which includes the sales process, ease of doing business, customer support and product quality, why would a customer take a chance on leaving a company that knows them for a company that doesn’t?

Image Credit: Google Gemini

This article was originally published on Forbes.com.

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Humans and AI BOTH Hallucinate

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Humans and AI BOTH Hallucinate

GUEST POST from Shep Hyken

One of the reasons customers are concerned about or even scared of artificial intelligence (AI) is that it has been known to provide incorrect answers. The result is frustration and concern over whether to believe any AI-fueled technology. In my annual customer service and customer experience research, I asked more than 1,000 U.S. consumers if they ever received wrong or incorrect information from an AI self-service technology. Fifty-one percent said yes.

No, AI is not perfect. Even though the technology continues to improve, it still makes mistakes. And my response to those who claim they won’t trust AI because of those mistakes is to ask, “Has a live customer support agent ever given you bad information?”

That question gets a surprised look, and then a smile, and then an acknowledgement, something like, “You’re right. I never thought about that.”

When AI gives bad information, I refer to that as Artificial Incompetence. It’s just as frustrating when we experience bad information from a live agent, which I call HI, or Human Incompetence. I doubt – I actually know – that the AI and the human aren’t trying to give you bad information.

I once called a customer support number to get help with what seemed like a straightforward question. I didn’t like the answer I received. It just didn’t make sense. Rather than argue, I thanked the agent, hung up, and dialed the same customer support number. A different agent answered, and I asked the same question. This time, I liked the answer. Two humans from the same company answering the same question, but with two completely different answers. And we worry about AI being inconsistent!

AI Hallucination Cartoon Shep Hyken

AI and Humans Make Mistakes

The reality is that both AI and humans make mistakes, and both will continue to do so. The difference is our expectations. We don’t expect humans to be perfect, so when they are not, we may be disappointed, maybe even angry. We may or may not forgive them, but usually, we just chalk it up to being … human. But it’s different when interacting with AI. We expect it to be reliable, and when it makes a mistake, we often assume the entire system is flawed.

Perhaps we should treat both with the same reasonable expectations and the same healthy skepticism we apply to weather forecasters, who use sophisticated technology and have years of training yet still can’t seem to get tomorrow’s forecast right half the time. Well, it seems like half the time! That doesn’t mean we won’t be checking the forecast before we plan our outdoor activities. AI, too, is sophisticated technology that can make life easier.

Image credits: Gemini, Shep Hyken

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Treat Customers Right Without Expecting the Same in Return

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The Reality Rule

Treat Customers Right Without Expecting the Same in Return

GUEST POST from Shep Hyken

I recently wrote about the Reality Rule in my Forbes column. Apparently, I hit on a topic that resonated with the Forbes readers, which prompted me to write a version for our subscribers to The Shepard Letter.

The Golden Rule, which most of us learned at a very young age, is to “Do unto others as you would have done unto you.” This is a great business principle when it comes to your customers. Slightly modified, it is “Treat your customers the way you want to be treated.”

My friend Dr. Tony Alessandra adapted the Golden Rule and came up with the Platinum Rule, which is to “Do unto others as they’d like done unto them.” Alessandra’s point is that not everyone wants to be treated the way you do. In business, you must adapt to treating customers according to their needs and expectations, not yours. I’m a believer and proponent of this concept. That said, this article is going to focus on the Golden Rule, but for a different reason.

I was reading a book, Give Hospitality by Taylor Scott, a business allegory about a woman who leaves a job with a toxic culture and finds work with a company that is the exact opposite of what she’d been experiencing. In her second week of training, she sees a sign on the wall:

“Nothing in the Golden Rule says that others will treat us as we have treated them. It only says we must treat others the way we would want to be treated.” -– Rosa Parks, American civil rights activist

This is a powerful quote, especially when you understand the background. The expectation you have of others shouldn’t always be based on how you treat them, and this is especially applicable in the customer experience.

The point is that you will encounter difficult, unreasonable, and downright rude customers. But their behavior should not dictate yours. You have a choice in how you respond.

I’ve seen people on the front line get frustrated when they “bend over backward” for a customer, only to have them continue to be demanding and ungrateful. Expecting them to treat you the same way, with kindness, concern, and empathy, is the wrong expectation. You’re not treating customers well because you expect something in return. You’re doing it because it’s the right thing to do. This is a mindset you must adopt. Otherwise, you risk becoming angry and bitter toward your customers and even your job.

That’s why I’ve come up with a new rule: The Reality Rule, which is to treat customers well, even if they don’t treat you well.

Remember, some customers are having a bad day. Others are just difficult people. Regardless, take a lesson from Give Hospitality and Rosa Parks. Don’t keep score. Focus on what you can control: your attitude, your effort, and your commitment to creating an amazing customer experience that gets customers to say, “I’ll be back!”

Image credits: Gemini

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People Love to Repeat Immediate Gratification

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People Love to Repeat Immediate Gratification

GUEST POST from Shep Hyken

“Anything that is immediately gratifying will be repeated.” Almost 15 years ago, that was Steve Wynn’s opening line of a keynote speech. Wynn, the founder and chairman of Wynn Resorts, went on to say, “The strongest force on earth is something that affects your self-esteem.”

Wynn was talking about how leaders should treat employees. That is the inspiration for this article. My take on this is simple. When leaders can create a gratifying experience that builds self-esteem for employees, they create fulfillment. In other words, make someone feel good about what they are doing, and they will repeat it and want to keep growing to make it better.

So, how can we create an experience that will be repeated?

Here are four ways:

1. Praise Employees for a Job Well Done: If someone is doing a good job, let them know it. Celebrate their successes and wins. To do this, you must pay attention to what employees are doing.

2. Thank Them for Their Hard Work: It’s one thing to say, “Great job.” It’s another to express genuine appreciation. Thank employees when they step up, work hard, and deliver on your expectations.

3. Educate Employees and Make Them Smarter: Learning is akin to personal growth. Giving people an opportunity to grow will increase their confidence and self-esteem. That growth turns into better employee and customer experiences.

4. Give Them Opportunities to Share Their Stories: This is the big one. In Wynn’s video, he shared the story of an employee who went “above and beyond” to help a hotel guest get their medicine delivered. That became their “North Star” of how employees should treat customers. I recently wrote about these types of stories and how important it is for an organization to not only find them but also share them with their teams. We have a tool I call the Moments of Magic® Card, and it’s the No. 1 culture-changing tool we share with our clients. This ongoing exercise has employees write a short example in just a few sentences about a positive customer or employee experience they created. These are shared at team meetings, and the best get shared throughout the entire company. Some clients compile the examples and assemble a book of their own legendary customer service stories.

Instant Gratification Shep Hyken Cartoon

Share Their Stories

All four of these are important, but let’s emphasize the Share Their Stories idea. Toward the end of his speech, Wynn talked about how he shared the medicine story with all employees. It motivated others to create their stories. He also mentioned that beautiful chandeliers, handwoven fabrics, onyx, and marble are wasted investments if the customers aren’t treated well. Regardless of how beautiful his resorts are, employees make the difference.

Stories from fellow employees create motivation, and it’s gratifying to them to be recognized and praised for their efforts. This is what gets the best behaviors and practices repeated, and what gets customers to say, “I’ll be back.”

Image credits: Pixabay

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The Reality Rule for Business

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The Reality Rule for Business

GUEST POST from Shep Hyken

Most of us learned the Golden Rule at a young age: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” This is a perfect rule for business, and specifically customer service and customer experience (CX). It translates into treating customers the way you want to be treated. It makes sense … or does it?

My colleague Dr. Tony Alessandra came up with a version of the Golden Rule he calls the Platinum Rule: “Do unto others as they would like done unto them.” Changing two words, you to them, in this rule means not everyone wants to be treated the in same way you might like to be treated. And in a broader sense, not everyone wants to be treated the same way.

However, when it comes to certain customers, no matter how you treat them, it doesn’t matter. If you don’t recognize this, it can break both employee satisfaction and customer satisfaction. That means it can also break a business.

The Expectation Trap

Recently, I read Give Hospitality by Taylor Scott, which tells the story of an employee who left her job because of a toxic workplace culture and found the perfect job where people, both employees and customers, were treated with respect and dignity. In her second week of training, she read a quote displayed on the company’s training room wall:

“Nothing in the Golden Rule says others will treat us as we have treated them. It only says we must treat others the way we would want to be treated.” – Rosa Parks

This quote from the legendary civil rights activist highlights a basic truth about customer service: exceptional treatment of customers doesn’t guarantee the customer will respond the same way. Yet many front-line employees and managers fall into the expectation trap and become frustrated when customers remain difficult despite receiving outstanding service.

The Danger of Misplaced Expectations

When employees expect customers to change their behavior to mirror that of employees, there is a possible danger of:

Employee Burnout: Front-line staff become disillusioned when their exceptional effort to take care of their customers isn’t appreciated or met with a more positive response. This is one of the top reasons it’s hard to keep good customer service reps. They say, “I can’t take it anymore,” and quit.
Inconsistent Customer Service: Frustrated employees may begin to take on the attitudes of their difficult customers, creating an inconsistent and bad experience for other customers.
Customers Leave: Difficult customers can become your most loyal customers when their problems are resolved with patience, kindness and professionalism, even if they don’t show it in their reactions. To avoid this, employees must be persistent and follow a new rule. (Read on!)

The Danger of Misplaced Expectations

The Reality Rule

Up until now, we have had the Golden Rule and the Platinum Rule. Now we have the Reality Rule:

Treat customers well, even if they don’t treat you well.

This isn’t about unacceptable abuse from a customer. Customers who cross the line with verbal abuse and threats fall under the category of Customers Who Aren’t Worth Doing Business With. Customers are allowed to be angry and agitated. They may be upset about the company or a product, and sometimes their behavior is driven by factors beyond your control.

The Reality Rule has three components:

Control Your Response: While you can’t control the customer’s behavior, you have complete control over your attitude, effort and professionalism. Don’t let your angry customer’s behavior cause you to derail.
Be Consistent: You know what it takes to deliver a great experience. Stay true to the core value of taking care of customers and, as just mentioned and worth mentioning again, don’t let your angry customer’s behavior cause you to go off track.
Turn Foes into Friends: This is more of a goal than a rule, but it’s a goal you must start with in every tenuous interaction. My annual customer service and CX research finds that 81% of customers said they would consider returning to a company if it actively sought to make amends for a bad customer experience. When you handle a complaint properly, the customer will have higher confidence in you and your company than if the problem had never happened at all.

Final Words

When your team embraces the Reality Rule, magic happens. Difficult customers often transform into loyal advocates. Employee satisfaction increases when they understand their role and what they have control over. And your organization builds a reputation for taking care of customers, even when there are problems or complaints.

Remember, you’re not treating customers well because you expect them to change their behavior, although it’s nice when it happens — and sometimes it does. You’re doing it because it’s the right thing to do, knowing in the long run it pays dividends to properly manage problems and complaints. The Reality Rule creates the kind of experience that gets customers to say, “I’ll be back!”

This article was originally published on Forbes.com.

Image credits: Google Gemini

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