Thousands of businesses that are currently operating in the world today are based on customer service. Sometimes, customer services can be overlooked as it will often be seen as something at the bottom of the totem pole. Ironically, it is probably the most important aspect that should never be overlooked, because for many businesses, the quality of customer service can easily make or break the business. With this clear, it is surprising how many businesses get classed as a level one or a level two. One would think that businesses would strive for a level five in customer service, but being as most seem to see customer service jobs as at the bottom, it is not a primary concern. Unfortunately for these people, great customer service is essential. Without it, the business will most likely fail and have to shut down.
What are the levels of customer service? There are five levels of customer service. Level one is poor, level two is acceptable, level three is good, level four is excellent and level five is world class. While level five is world class and one would think that most businesses would strive for it in order to be successful, it is actually not acquired by most of the business out there. In fact, a relatively large percentage of businesses are classed as being a level one for customer service. About half of the businesses in the world have a level two in customer service. As mentioned before, a level two is acceptable. This is not exactly something to be proud of. Acceptable is one step up from being poor and being poor basically means that the business should just shut down and not even bother.
What does it mean to be acceptable? What it means to be acceptable is that the service is inconsistent and not overly good, not very good customer relations, poor management, little follow through on promises, not thinking of customers first, and very few occasions where good customer service is supplied. Remaining at the acceptable level is a blatant show of laziness. A company can become better if they sit down and have set policies that are followed. Perhaps, management can even bring in professionals who can train their employees in how to deliver proper customer service. The company can also take more responsibility for their promises and follow through on them. Keeping in mind that customers should always be first and that only having employees who will help the customers properly is also extremely important. It is also necessary that management could get some training in how to deal with customers properly as well as how they can set a better example for their employees. Much of what goes on with the employees and how much they are allowed to get away with, has much to do with how management handles itself. If management is poor, the customer service will often reflect the poor management by providing poor customer service. With some good hard work and attention, the business could easily move up to a level three in customer service.
