Why a Trusted Customer Service Culture Matters
“I don’t know what it is, I just don’t trust him.” You’ve probably said it, or you’ve heard someone say it. Trust is a vital element of customer service. Does a trusted customer service culture matter?
We quickly can recognize that a culture develops from values, beliefs, and traditions. In sales or customer service trust may have a direct link to symbols, imagines, and brand. Trust may sometimes be hard to define but we know it when we feel it.
Fine Print
Most people don’t read the fine print. They seldom read every part of a product label. They don’t read the pamphlet that comes with the prescription, or the terms and conditions contained within the drop down box on their recent online bill pay.
Most likely it is not because they don’t care, it is more likely that they have already decided to trust what they are getting themselves into.
Trust isn’t about the fine print. It is more likely about word of mouth, what they have observed from others, or from watching a television commercial or YouTube video. Of course, then you must realize that they have decided to trust those sources too.
Inside the Organization
Your customer service culture starts within the organization. It is often based on a concept that many would suggest is primordial. What we see, feel, and hear establishes our trust.
Trust comes from the observation when they don’t believe anyone is watching. It may come from the power of numbers, the perception of acceptance, or when the risk of chance feels small. Deep inside we connect because of trust.
Even today it may be essential for life, it makes groups more powerful, and we know that by working together we can accomplish more. It’s a tribe mentality, follow the crowd, if many are doing it, it must be okay, safe, and something good.
Trusted Customer Service
Through marketing and advertising your organization can accomplish a lot, but the feeling that your organization delivers starts within the culture. Sure people see the marketing and advertising but they also put a lot of weight in their own observations and draw conclusions based on what they feel.
If the people on the inside don’t believe, it is a much harder sell on the outside.
So what do you think? Does your culture deliver on trust?
– DEG
Your culture of service matters. It is why I wrote this book:
Dennis E. Gilbert is a business consultant, speaker (CSPTM), and culture expert. He is a five-time author and the founder of Appreciative Strategies, LLC. His business focuses on positive human performance improvement solutions through Appreciative Strategies®. Reach him through his website at Dennis-Gilbert.com or by calling +1 646.546.5553.
Originally posted on September 5, 2017, last updated on December 23, 2018.
