If you\u2019ve ever worked in retail\u2014and even if you haven\u2019t\u2014you\u2019ve probably heard the phrase, \u201cthe customer is always right.\u201d But just because you\u2019ve heard it doesn\u2019t make it true.<\/p>\n\n
My daughter Megan enjoys the BBC show, Mr. Selfridge<\/a><\/em>, about pioneering retailer Jeremy Selfridge. Supposedly, he was one of the people to popularize the phrase that still rings in our ears all these years later in just about every sphere of business.<\/p>\n I understand where this idea comes from. And I\u2019m on record saying<\/a> customer service is one of the most important forms of marketing today. But we all know we can overspend a marketing budget, right?<\/p>\n Saying the customer is always<\/em> right is even worse. It\u2019s like saying there is no budget. You don\u2019t need me to tell you how that can play out. There are limits to customer service.<\/p>\n [periscope]I\u2019ll be discussing \u201cWhy Sometimes You Need to Fire Your Customers\u201d today at 2:15 p.m. CDT on #VirtualMentor.[\/periscope]<\/p>\n I\u2019m remembering one customer in particular I had to fire a few years ago. Despite a heroic effort on the part of my team, we didn\u2019t feel as though we could make him happy. So, we made a refund and said goodbye. And the truth is that a lot of businesses could find relief in doing the same thing.<\/p>\n In my experience, there are three very good reasons you sometimes must fire your customers:<\/p>\n When we get that backwards, we overburden our people with customer demands and create burnout and turnover. Suddenly, you\u2019re hemorrhaging talent and your business suffers. Bad deal.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Here\u2019s a little insight about human nature, and feel free to pass this one around: Some people can\u2019t be helped<\/em>. You know them when they show up. Everything is a problem. Nothing is right. Satisfaction is a foreign country. Don\u2019t fail the rest of your customers by getting bogged down with this one. Cut your losses and move on.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n They make you hate going to work.<\/strong> The older I get, the more this matters to me. It\u2019s a big deal to everyone I work with. We love our work. We love getting to create and help people. The last thing we want is for someone to come suck the joy out of it for us.<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve served someone like this, you know the drill. You start groaning when you see their phone number, their email, their face. It\u2019s like a little part of you dies every time they contact you. Life is too short for that. Good customer service is not synonymous with masochism.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n Now, just to make sure everybody is tracking with me, here\u2019s what I\u2019m not saying. I\u2019m not saying that you can be bad to your customers. I am not saying that it is wise to disappoint your customers. I am not saying that it is prudent to treat customer relations as if it doesn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n\t\tNo, the Customer Is Not Always Right<\/h3>\n
What Pleasing Everyone Is Costing You<\/h3>\n
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Let\u2019s Be Clear<\/h3>\n