The field of sales has many different skills and areas of knowledge that a salesperson must master in order to be successful. At the base of everything though is the ability to provide outstanding customer service to everyone who comes in to see you. As with anything, having a set of standards is vital in making sure you are satisfying every customer. Let’s take a look at those customer service standards.

• If you say it, do it: The quickest way to lose a customer is to not be following through on your promises. If you tell a customer their engagement ring is going to be ready by a certain date, then that ring better be ready. Chances are pretty good that the customer has made plans to pop the question based on when he is picking up the ring. You don’t want to be the reason for that moment not happening. Sometimes there are things out of your control as a salesperson, but it is up to you to monitor those issues and make sure you are communicating with your customer.
• Satisfy every customer: In a perfect world, every customer says, “I’ll take it” and walks away completely satisfied. That’s not reality but a salesperson must do everything in their power to make sure every customer walks away feeling like they were listened to. Even if they don’t buy that day, if you treat them right then they may buy tomorrow.
• Keep your personal problems out of business: Everyone has a personal life, and we all are dealing with our own issues, but those issues cannot interfere with your ability to provide excellent customer service. Customers want to enjoy their shopping/buying experience and, honestly, don’t care about what’s going on in the life of their salesperson. If the salesperson talks about their personal problems, then chances are high that the customer is going to start sharing their persona problems, and now you are completely off track. Keep the conversation professional.

As you can imagine, these three are only the beginning of the customer service standards that all salespeople should be striving to master. In the coming weeks, we will continue to examine the rest of the standards. In the meantime, keep the customer first and you will be well on your way to a successful career.

FINAO - Brad Huisken