It's easier to provide quality customer service when someone is standing right in front of you, and could say "I'll take it" at any given minute. It's a lot harder over the phone, but it is just as important. Over the past month or so I've been disappointed by some of my experiences when trying to conduct business over the phone. I'm sure everyone reading this is excellent with their phone customer service, but reminders never hurt.

A couple of weeks ago, I called a company about some business; it wasn't urgent, but it was something that I needed an answer to in a timely matter. Three days went by and no one called me back, which is extremely frustrating. I eventually got the information I needed, but I had to track it down using other means than my contact. That should never happen.

It's so important to remember that when a customer calls a salesperson with a question or concern, they called because it is important to them. A salesperson gets a lot of phone calls and to them it is just another part of their day, but to any one customer, that phone call maybe the single most important thing on their agenda. Salespeople can never forget that their customers are anxiously awaiting a response; they should not be kept waiting any longer than necessary.

The other thing to remember is this: just because a customer has already purchased from you does not mean they won't need you again in the future. It's easy to focus on the people you haven't sold to, and forget about the ones you have sold to, but it is also easy to burn bridges. If a customer buys an engagement ring from you, chances are they are going to have other jewelry needs in the future. If they cannot get their salesperson to return a simple phone call, why would they come back in the future?

Everyone gets busy and it is easy to put the returning of phone calls on the back burner, but they are customers too. If you make a habit of blowing them off, sooner or later that will come back to bite you. It's simple: return your phone calls promptly and you will be rewarded.