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Be Flexible to Fill the Gaps - 10/6/26


The non-profit has the expected challenges.  There are only 3 people in the organization, yet, they have the same responsibilities of a larger company.  They have to do finance, sales, marketing; they deliver their services to the community, and they need to keep a pulse on what’s going on Read more

Is This Good Customer Service? - 9/29/26


A friend of mine reached out to me recently as she waited for the electrical technician to show up at her house to do some minor repairs.  She had never worked with this company before, but they sent a text about the tech who was soon to arrive. The message Read more

Ownership when Fixing Others’ Errors - 9/22/26


We were conducting training with a client recently, and one of the participants, Jackie, is in a role in his organization where he goes out to the customer site to investigate issues, address customer complaints, and fix problems.  While he’s at the site, he often gets an earful from Read more

Why “No” is So Important - 9/15/26


The employee told the caller: “I don’t think that is possible.” The customer eventually hung up, and redialed to ask a different employee the same question. The employee responded to the customer: “That’s probably not the best way to do it.”  Then, the customer kept asking question after question, arguing Read more

It’s Not “You,” It’s “I” - 9/8/26


During a business writing course that I took years ago, the instructor had us write an e-mail.  I can’t recall if it was written to a co-worker or customer, but after writing this e-mail, she had us count every “I” and “You.”  We talked about how we need to Read more

It Shouldn’t Make a Difference, But… - 9/1/26


We have this conversation with lots of our sports clients, but the principles apply across all different industries.  Too many service representatives view a conversation with a customer as a transaction.  Just get him off the phone as quickly as possible.  The customer is Joe Public, not Joseph Pendergrass.  Read more

Use What the Customer Gives You - 8/25/26


Scenario #1: The customer sent an e-mail to the general inbox at the company.  The message noted that the customer needed to get a family member added to their account, but they couldn’t tell from the website how to do so. The next morning an employee opened up the e-mail, Read more

How Better Customer Service is Better for You - 8/18/26


Oftentimes, we have employees in training or workshops who really want to understand what’s in it for them to deliver better customer service.  How does the employee benefit from a better customer experience? Noted below are 5 different aspects of a great experience desired by the customer.  What if... The customer Read more

Manage New Customer Expectations - 8/11/26


The fan had never been to a motorsports event before, but they had been to concerts.  They had been to big conferences.  At those other events, they could park right next to the venue, many of the activities were indoors, and weather was a non-issue.  So, they were not Read more

Complement Empathy with Action - 8/4/26


A man falls into a hole, and he can’t get out.  He starts yelling for help, and a doctor walks by and looks down the hole.  The man in the hole yells to the doctor “Please help me.  I’ve fallen into this hole!”  And the doctor takes out a Read more

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Ownership when Fixing Others’ Errors – 9/22/26

Posted on September 22, 2026 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

We were conducting training with a client recently, and one of the participants, Jackie, is in a role in his organization where he goes out to the customer site to investigate issues, address customer complaints, and fix problems.  While he’s at the site, he often gets an earful from the customer, and that earful is sometimes a complaint about a co-worker or his company or something else that occurred before Jackie was ever personally involved in the situation.

After conducting some small group role plays during the training, I asked for volunteers to recognize one of their co-workers who did an especially good job playing the role of the employee dealing with an angry customer.  The person who volunteered to share kudos decided to recognize Jackie.

She said that Jackie was presented with the complaining customer, who was griping about something having nothing to do with Jackie himself, and Jackie’s co-worker complimented him for what he said during the role play:  “Thank you for sharing what happened.  Even though I was not involved with the issue, I am here now, and I will help you find a solution.”

What impressed Jackie’s co-worker during the role play was that he took ownership of the situation.  He noted – but didn’t harp on the fact – that he didn’t cause the problem.  Jackie didn’t get defensive with the customer.  Jackie was not argumentative.

Instead of focusing on the past, Jackie took ownership, took responsibility for moving toward a future resolution.

Sometimes we get fixated on the definition of ownership being taking blame or responsibility for our own mess ups.  But ownership is also incredibly vital in customer service when it involves taking ownership for resolving the errors of others.

Take ownership over resolutions when dealing with others’ errors.

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Why “No” is So Important – 9/15/26

Posted on September 15, 2026 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

The employee told the caller: “I don’t think that is possible.” The customer eventually hung up, and redialed to ask a different employee the same question.

The employee responded to the customer: “That’s probably not the best way to do it.”  Then, the customer kept asking question after question, arguing with the employee that the customer’s approach would work.

The employee reacted with: “I’m sorry, Mr. Smith.  We likely cannot have it done by then.”  The customer asked to talk to the supervisor – somebody they felt could make that timeline happen.

The reality is that the employee knew that the request was not possible, knew that the method proposed by the customer wouldn’t work, knew that the customer’s requested deadline could not be met.  However, the employee phrased that knowledge without certainty or confidence. 

So, You’re Telling Me…

There’s a famous scene in the movie Dumb and Dumber where Jim Carrey’s character is told by someone he’s interested in that there’s “like one out of a million” chance she’d go out with him.  Carrey’s character responds: “So, you’re telling me there’s a chance?”

When “No” is the true answer, but we are not clear on the No, many customers take that as: “So, you’re telling me there’s a chance?”

Professionally Say “No” and Offer a Plan B

There is a way to be professional and say “No.”  There is a phrasing you can use to be empathetic and say “No.”  There’s a way to use the word “No” or “Unfortunately not” or “We cannot,” and have it received well with empathy and with the transition to what might be a Plan B.

Maybe that Plan B does not occur in the exact timeline the customer wants.  Maybe Plan B is not the exact step-by-step process that the customer would like, but if you convey that you’re still getting them to the end goal, they may be more open to the initial No than you realize.

Don’t be afraid to professionally say “No” to the customer.

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When They Want the Supervisor – 1/27/26

Posted on January 27, 2026 in Customer Service Tip of the Week Please leave a comment

Maybe you did your best with the customer, or maybe the customer didn’t even give you a chance.  They want to talk to your supervisor.  They see you, notice your title does not have “supervisor” or “manager” or “director” or “President and CEO” in it, so they want to go up the ladder.

Different organizations have different protocols for handling these situations, and they often involve wanting you to handle this on your own – to do whatever you can to avoid the escalation.

But sometimes, despite your best efforts (or the customer just being obstinate), you have no choice.  Now let me throw in a wrinkle.  Your supervisor’s not available at that moment.  What do you do?

No Supervisor?  No Problem

First, explain the issue with the supervisor availability, offer some empathy with your not being able to give them the exact person they want to talk to at that moment.  But let them know you want to do the best you can to help them.

Second, if you haven’t done so already, clarify the rationale for the request.  What is their issue?  What is their goal?

Third, confirm your understanding of what they’ve shared.

Finally, share an alternative…or two!  Offer another party that they could speak with; offer to have the supervisor contact them back at a time when the customer is likely to be available.

Why Use this Process

This process helps you defuse the situation, which could get even worse once they realize the supervisor is not available.  You get the details you need to pass on to whomever is going to address this next.  You provide some empathy and understanding so that they know they’re being heard and that the information they’re giving you won’t have to be repeated to the person they talk to next. 

Then, by coming up with an alternative or two to consider, you’re actually putting the choice in their hands.  You’re giving them some control.  Yes, that can be risky, but you’re giving them control over a decision where you have provided options that you know are doable.

When they want the unavailable supervisor: Defuse, get details, empathize, and give them some control.

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