The real issue is that too many businesses define “good customer service” by a yardstick that should apply to “doing your job properly”. They would be shocked, too, to hear that the standards they apply are merely average. The truth is that, while standards have improved, we have a low level of expectation of customer service in the UK. As a consequence, it only takes a little bit of effort to look like a stand-out operator.

I asked some contacts what they regard as the best in customer service. The overall response was “someone who always goes the extra yard”, “someone who delivers more than they promise”, “someone who gets it right first time, every time”. That word ‘someone’ kept coming up – not ‘a business which…’ That confirms that the best of customer service is associated with individuals. Consider that most of the stories of top class service you have heard refer to one person doing the unexpected. But in almost all cases they will refer to an empowered individual, someone working in an environment where high service standards are aimed for throughout the company.

It is my contention that quality customer service starts with good quality selling. It sets the tone for a business relationship from the outset. Let’s take an example. A client calls two printwear businesses wanting high vis jackets for their sales engineers. One visits quickly, is organised, has a range of samples and knows the garment decoration options well. He gives a good price, confirmed by post. Meanwhile his competitor is similarly on the ball over high vis jackets but he also establishes that the engineers don’t have winter weight sweatshirts, he points out the benefits of all staff wearing corporate polo shirts and suggests children’s sized variants for anyone with kids “because all kids want to dress like Dad”.

No surprises, the second guy got the order, which, over time, he turned from a few hundred pounds into a few thousand. The customer who told me this story talked about it as an example of good service (which it was) rather than good selling (which it also was). The point is that lots of customers don’t know the potential breadth of printwear and the impact it can have on their business, so selling the full proposition becomes good service.

You can’t deliver good customer service from behind your desk or sitting in the shop. You have to get out there and meet the potential customers. At the very least, you have to get on the phone and invite them into your shop. If you just respond to enquiries you’ll never build customer relationships and they are the basis on which good service is founded.

There are lots of little ways to enhance your service which are invariably very low cost or free. They are usually about attention to detail. Top Banana quotes the example of how you deliver product – in solid new boxes with the contents detailed on the lid, with a sample product bagged on the lid, all the products in the box face up, all size and colour variations together. This is all the simplest of customer care but it makes life easy for the customer and shows that you think your product is important.

What happens when things go wrong? You would like to think that this is an aspect of your business that stays hidden from 99.9% of customers, but it is a key element in good service. If your product or service fails to live up to customer expectations you want the earliest possible knowledge of it and you have to do everything in your power to put it right. Interestingly, the result of that effort will typically be a long-term customer, because he knows that even when things go wrong, you’ll put them right.

Here’s a personal story. I bought a pair of shoes at River Island. After a month, they split. I took them back and they were replaced from a store 200 miles away. A month later the new ones split. They had a new range on sale by now and I didn’t like any of them. So they gave me my money back, unprompted. My attitude to River Island ought to be “their product’s rubbish”, but it’s not. Instead, I’m impressed by their customer service and I would buy from them again.

Do you know about your customers’ successes? Local newspapers are commonly not very good at picking up on major contracts and awards won by companies in their area (goodness knows why – it must be a great sales opportunity). Trade magazines are far better at it. So, as far as practicably possible, read your clients’ trade press and if you see such announcements write and congratulate them. I bet you’ll be the only one. You could apply this generally as a means of making contact with new sales leads. Anyone who’s just won an award should want to put it on their printwear. Yes, this is selling but it’s led by a customer service ethos.

The best customer service on the planet has to be the ideas that you have picked up elsewhere and share with clients. “Here comes the guy who helps us make money” must surely be the ultimate compliment for a salesman and, again, it’s about customer service. Most people are thoroughly decent; if you show them an idea that has worked well for another client and which they like, they’ll automatically give you the order. The berks who go to the cheapest source will end up – very quickly – not getting any ideas from you, or anybody else.

Take a positive approach. “I can be with you tomorrow afternoon” is so much more customer friendly than “I can’t get there today, I’m afraid”. Even if the customer said “I need to see you as soon as possible”, it’s entirely likely that their definition of that started tomorrow midday. As soon as you include a negative, the customer is likely to think “this is obviously poor service in this industry” even if they had no idea what ‘fast’ was before calling. In the same way, “we can deliver product x tomorrow” is better than “we can’t deliver product y until Monday”. It is quite likely that product x will be fine.

Are you accessible? Once a customer has established contact, indeed a commercial relationship, with a business they want to talk to the same person, every single time. But as a salesman you are out visiting other clients. Oddly, the explosion in easy communication via mobile phones, internet and social media sites hasn’t solved the problem of clients feeling that their suppliers are inaccessible. Tell clients that you switch your phone off when in meetings or that you make a habit of responding to e-mails at 9am, midday and 5.30pm.

Say thank you. This comes from America where, in my view, it’s overused: “Thank you for your time today even though you said you wouldn’t do business with me if I were the last garment decorator living.” I exaggerate, but not by much. However, in the UK it tends to be underused. A hand-written note saying ‘thank you for your time and your order’ is something people do value. The same would apply to ‘we didn’t do business this time but I hope we will soon; let’s meet for a beer/coffee’. If a supplier or a member of staff goes the extra yard for you, that’s worth a handwritten thank you as well. Male readers should recognise that women do this sort of thing as a matter of course in their social lives and therefore are especially responsive to it in a business setting.

Stay in touch. As I’ve said here recently the explosion of communication routes means that we can and should communicate more often than in the past. The tricky bit is how often. Personally, if someone has something pertinent and different to tell me, I’ll listen or read their e-mail but if they are just regurgitating old news, forget it. In the printwear industry, there are a lot of product and usage success stories to tell. Especially if they feature an unusual use these are valid ideas to pass on. Anything which says, “client x picked up new business this way” has to be something relevant to tell everyone. Early in a business relationship it is appropriate to establish how often to call. I would also find out how many e-mails people get. For some it’s thousands each week so good old snail mail might work better. The overall principle is to tell people something which could benefit them, so making your sales activity into a service.

Paul Clapham is a marketing consultant with over 25 years’ experience covering a broad range of business sectors and a full spread of marketing disciplines. He works with small, medium and large companies alike to increase their profitability through marketing.

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