Customer Service Skills Knowledge Base and Frequently Asked Questions
Who Coined the Phrase "The Customer Is Always Right"?
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Perhaps the most quoted phrase about customer service is "the customer is always right". Unfortunately, not only is it a rather meaningless expression, but it's lead to blind following of an idea that is both misguided and inaccurate. Where did it come from?
We need to address the single most popular false idea bout customer service. No doubt you've heard the phrase, "The customer is always right." It's a great slogan, credited to H. Gordon Selfridge, who passed a way in 1947. Mr. Selfridge was one of the earlier successful retailers (initially in England), who later fell upon hard times. Unfortunately, it's wrong and misleading.
So, what's a better perspective. From the same chapter:
- The customer always deserves to be treated as if he or she is important and his or her opinions, needs, and wants are worth listening to.
- The customer deserves to receive maximum effort on the part of those serving him or her, even when the customer's expectations, wants and needs may be impractical.
Robert Bacal is the author of two books on customer service: Perfect Phrases for Customer Service: Hundreds of Tools, Techniques, and Scripts for Handling Any Situation, and Defusing Hostile Customers Workbook. Most of the questions and answers in the Customer Service Knowledgebase (which you are reading now) is based on the material in these books.