Good Behaviour is Good
Business
 Business is a social activity between people. In a tough market, you
need to maker sure the people who pay you for your products and services
are treated well by the people you pay wages to. Is the behaviour of your
staff towards your customers good enough to make them want to buy, come
back and even tell other how great you are?
According to the shopping experiences my friends and I have had recently,
the typical customer experience is typically poor:
- A customer laden with large rolls of fencing wire struggles to the
checkout in a large building supply store. Along the way, he passes
several staff members who offer no help.
- A customer arranges for funds to be transferred from his credit
card account into his bank account. Five days later, the money has not
appeared.
When he rings to find out why, he is told the problem was a poor performing
employee.
- A customer stands in line to pay and sees a staff member signalling
with his thumb that he should go to a second cash register. The staff
member then processes the sale without a word until, at the end he asks, “You
don’t what a bag for that, do you?” It is clear the customer
is expected to carry the goods out in his hat.
- A bank makes a mistake that puts a customer in an awkward position.
A bank employee is quick with the excuses but does not think to say
sorry.
- A building inspector walks on to a property to do an inspection.
The homeowner introduces himself and offers his hand. The building inspector
shakes the hand but does not give his own name.
This preponderance of abysmal behaviour presents a wonderful opportunity
for your company to stand out. All you have to do is treat your customers
as if you cared about them. And, why would you not care since 100%of your
money comes from your customers?
Here are four steps to getting your staff to treat your customers so
well, they will be happy to pay, come back and tell others how fantastic
your are.
1. Make sure your people know what is expected of them.
I wonder if the supervisors of any of the employees in the above situations
had explained to their staff how they were expected to behave towards
customers? You cannot assume your staff were well brought up or have
the same standards of behaviour you have. Make sure there is no doubt
in their minds about how they should behave and why. You can download
a list of 19 ways staff should behave. Repeat
this
conversation often. In sports and religion, we know the importance of
repetition. In business, we think telling someone once is enough.
2. Treat your staff in the way you would like them to treat your customers.
Lead by example by treating your staff well. Sam Walton, who founded Wal-mart,
said there is a three-week gap between the time you start treating your
staff properly to when they start treating your customers the way you
would like them to. People will listen to your actions more than to your
words. Also, we all have an in-built sense of what is fair. If your staff
feel valued by you, they will care about looking after your customers.
3. Manage by walking around.
You will not know how your staff treat your customers if you spend most
of the day stuck in your office, in meetings or in the workshop. You
need to be out where staff are interacting with customers so you can
watch and listen to them. This will not only keep you in touch with reality,
it will keep your staff on their toes. It is where your staff and your
customers meet that business is won or lost.
4. Talk to your customers.
Another good way to find out how your customers are being treated is to
ask them. Make a point of talking to four or five customers every day
so you can ask them how your staff behaved. Ask how well they were treated
and for specific examples of what your staff did well and poorly. You
can ask customers as they leave your premises or you can telephone people
who did business with you the day before. Do not leave it too long. Ask
while the impression is fresh in their minds. If you hear bad news, just
listen. Make no excuses and certainly do not blame your staff. Just apologise,
thank them for the feedback and tell them you will be working hard to
improve the experience your customers get when they next deal with your
staff.
4. Recognize effort, reward achievement and celebrate success.
When you see someone behaving the way you would like them to, praise them.
Be specific about the behaviours you liked and tell them why it is important
to you they behave that way. This will increase the chances they will
continue to behave that way. When you see behaviour you don’t like,
tell them what it is they are doing wrong, why that’s a problem
and how you would like them to behave in the future. If you see someone
trying to behave properly but not getting it right, congratulate them
on trying and ask what you can do to help them get it right next time.
Your staff are not just the face of your company, in your customers’ eyes
they are your company. If your customers are treated with respect, by
friendly, helpful and knowledgeable staff that have a can-do, will-do
attitude, they will see your company as being different from the rest.
And, that’s
good business.
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