Is the Customer Always Right?

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Introduction

In business, companies, managers, and employees strive to offer the best customer service because happy customers lead to more sales and higher profits. The customer is always right is a cliché statement that is used as a foundational philosophy for running successful businesses. It is an expression of how much companies value their customers as they are invaluable assets that are vital to the attainment of their goals. This phenomenon has existed for many centuries and has received widespread criticism and positive appraisals. Critics argue that it creates unhappy customers, and it gives undue advantage to undeserving customers. However, proponents believe that it is important because it is a crucial representation of positive business ethics and a commitment to provide products and services of high quality.

The Customer is Always Right

The proclamation is correct because customers make the business, it represents good business ethics, it promotes excellence in customer service, and it increases a businesss bottom line. The phrase was pioneered by two retailers, namely Gordon Selfridge, Marshall Field, and John Wanamaker. This came after the realization that the success of their stores was directly proportional to their customers degree of happiness. They believed that each business had the responsibility of addressing customer complaints seriously so that they could not feel deceived, manipulated, or cheated (Mendler, 2019). Some critics have faulted the slogan, arguing that some customers can be deceptive, dishonest, and unrealistic, thus hurting the business. In that regard, conducting thorough investigations into complaints is important.

An important reason why many companies uphold the mantra the customer is always right is because of their awareness of how invaluable customers are to their success. A firm that lacks customers is simply a group of people spending money, time, and energy to produce goods and services that have no consumers. The phenomenon has existed for a long time because the main goal of any business is to create customer satisfaction through quality products and services. Therefore, the major priority for any business should be the contentment of the consumer. Many businesses have crumbled because of customer dissatisfaction. In such cases, failure emanated from the loss of customers and decreased sales. Negative feedback or reviews from customers can erode the image or reputation of a business (Mendler, 2019). It is difficult for a company to recover from a destroyed image. For example, some companies spend billions of dollars on social responsibility programs in an effort to improve their images after scandals that push customers away.

Making customers the focus of a business is an example of positive business ethics. Attentive listening, quality services, timely feedback, and timely communication are actions that promote a business image and reputation. A customer should be treated with respect and compassion. A company that treats its clients well reaps several benefits that include loyalty, a positive image, and higher profits (Mendler, 2019). Satisfied customers are an asset to any company because they refer other people to the business. A goal that is common to all businesses is to grow their customer base. In todays world of advanced technologies, satisfying customers is the key to growth and success because there are many platforms on which people share reviews of their experiences with different companies. Many shoppers read online reviews regarding certain products in order to make purchase decisions. It is beneficial for a business to have positive reviews because that would attract more people because of the excellent customer service and quality products they are likely to receive.

Believing that the customer is always right sets a high standard for customer service excellence. Research has established that the quality of customer experiences determines whether people remain loyal to a company or leave in search of better options (Mendler, 2019). Competitors capitalize on customer dissatisfaction to win new customers. Therefore, investing in customer satisfaction is less costly than losing them to other businesses. This could comprise creating loyalty programs to reward customers, offering discounts, and implementing after-sales services (Mendler, 2019). Excellence in customer service can be achieved in various ways. Examples include responding as quickly as possible, knowing customers through personalized interactions, taking responsibility for mistakes, fixing them, listening to customers, and thinking long term.

Conclusion

The customer is always right is a slogan that is common in the business world. It was pioneered by retailers Gordon Selfridge, Marshall Field, and John Wanamaker, who believed that their success was directly linked to customer happiness. The slogan promotes excellence in customer service, encourages the production of quality goods and services, and upholds positive business ethics. Customers are an important building block for businesses because they increase sales, increase customer numbers, and provide free marketing through the word of mouth. Satisfied customers refer their friends to businesses that provide excellent services and quality products. In addition, they write positive reviews online that are important in improving a companys brand and reputation. Every business should make customer satisfaction their main goal because dissatisfied customers leave in search of better alternatives.

Reference

Mendler, A. (2019). Why the customer is always right. Forbes. Web.

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