Great Expectations

Before your imagination takes you to the Charles Dickens tale of the orphan Pip and his adventures with Miss Havisham and Estella, let me simply state that we all have expectations of the people we interact with. Every day, people will do business with a particular person or business because they're is an assurance they will get what they expect and just like the fast food chain says, they want it they're way! Building trust is an essential part of building strong business and personal relationships. Having trust in someone means that you believe he or she is going to do what you expect. Each time a person falls short of your expectations, trust is lost. Fortunately, the opposite is also true. When expectations are satisfied or exceeded, the results are stronger relationships, repeat customers and great testimonials. No company or individual is perfect. We all make mistakes. The manner in which you solve someone's problem can be one of your greatest tools to building trust and rapport. While conducting an online sales class recently, Kevin Miller with Free Agent Academy mentioned that when he was waiting tables he was surprised to find that when he properly resolved a disgruntled customer's problem, his tip would go up five to ten percent. I saw this quote and believe it is appropriate; "Excellent customer service is the ability of a person or organization to constantly and consistently exceed the customer's expectations." Question: Have your expectations been exceeded? Do you have an excellent tip on how people can improve customer service? You can share by clicking here. Have a great week! Pierce