Do you have established policies for your staff?  For example, do 
you instruct your employees to offer assistance to everyone who 
enters your business with the same greeting? 

I would like to suggest that insisting on the same procedure for 
all of your customers is possibly sending them to your 
competitors!

One afternoon I had the unexpected luxury of time between 
appointments. It created a perfect opportunity to shop in the 
neighborhood. 

The middle of the afternoon, during the week, was an excellent 
opening to find a great new outfit! 

I was looking at items on the clothes racks when I felt a 
negative energy surrounding me. I looked around and several rows 
over a sales associate was glaring at me. When I made eye contact 
she screamed... "may I help you?" "No thank you", I replied. She 
reacted by another angry look and stomping away.

Apparently it was the policy in this department store for sales 
people to approach each potential customer and offer assistance. 
Because I have a profound hearing loss, I did not realize that 
someone was asking me a question.  However, the sales associate 
was determined to follow procedure and evidently had asked me 
several times ... "may I help you?"

When I did not respond in a way that she felt to be appropriate, 
she became angry and her voice became shrill. Do you believe that 
a sales associate screaming and glaring at me encouraged me to 
make a purchase? Of course it didn't. I left the store 
immediately.

That store is now out of business. I imagine they would have been 
more successful if they had not chased potential customers away 
with rudeness! 

What is the solution? 

Recognize that one course of action does not address all of your 
customers. Perhaps a person is hard of hearing or that English is 
not their first language. There are many reasons that a potential 
customer does not reply exactly as anticipated. 

Demanding that a customer respond as expected is creating a 
communication barrier. 

Perhaps you have more enlightened employees. Your people would 
not scream at customers. 

My hearing loss provides me with multiple opportunities for 
misunderstanding. I was reading the labels on paint cans, in the 
local hardware store, as I gathered information for a project. 
Someone tapped me on the arm. I looked up to face a sales 
associate. 

"May I help you?"  "No thank you", I replied. This time the sales 
associate ask me why I was not responding to her. She informed me 
that she had offered assistance several times and that I had 
refused to answer, so she approached and tapped my arm.

I explained that I was hard of hearing. She replied that she 
wondered why I was being rude! Me? I was minding my own business!

Do you consider this an example of wonderful customer service? I 
don't. I find it to be offensive. When I need assistance, I will 
request it.

Again, requiring the same procedure for everyone does not provide 
good customer service but might actually be creating 
communication barriers. 

What can you do? 

A flexible policy will address the needs of all of your 
customers. Offering assistance to people entering your business 
is effective.

However, if a potential customer does not immediately respond, 
it would be valuable to have a alternate plan. 

Good judgment is important. It is not necessary to force people 
to respond.  Many people resent the intrusion. 

Aggressive customer service in the form of screaming, or entering 
into the personal space of someone, is sending your competitors 
business.

Offering assistance is a good policy. Even better is recognizing 
the differences in your customers and responding appropriately.

The key to great customer service is overcoming barriers to 
effective communication. 

Mary Ellen Warner, MSA, DTM is a speaker, author and 
coach who works with people to overcome barriers to 
effective communication. Learn more about Mary Ellen 
at: http://www.marbilwarner.com or contact her at: 
maryellen@marbilwarner.com