Do Customers Care How Much You Know?

Of course product knowledge is very important. But, what is even more important is that you KNOW where to find the product knowledge. And even more important to customers is that you CARE enough to find the product knowledge.

KEY POINT: Customers don’t care how much you know until they know how much you CARE.

Recently, when ordering a product by telephone, I realized how very true this statement is.

Two weeks ago I called a pet supplies company to order a Christmas gift. The representative who answered my telephone call recommended something that was not in the catalog. When I had questions about the size of the item and she (her name is Pat) couldn’t find the answer, she did something that took me by surprise. Pat asked if I could wait a few minutes while she got the product out of stock so she could measure it and answer my question!

DELIVERING A HIGHER LEVEL OF SERVICE

The fact that Pat cared enough to take the time and effort to get the product out of stock so she could answer my question, reflected a level of service that completely won my loyalty. In the future, when I need pet supplies I will call her first. And I have told everyone I know about this experience.

If you ever need anything in the way of pet products and want to talk to a professional who really cares, call Pat.

The company is Foster & Smith and the telephone number is: 800-826-7206

THE NO-SERVICE EXPERIENCE

At the opposite end of great service is the no-service experience. Last year when looking for an inkjet cartridge for my new Hewlett-Packard 890C printer, I came across what a lot of consumers say they experience at "Super Discount Stores."

1. Lack of product knowledge
2. Lack of training
3. Lack of caring

Finding a cartridge that APPEARED to be the correct product, I asked a clerk if this cartridge would work in my printer. His answer: "I don’t know." That’s it. Not: "I’ll find out for you." Just: "I don’t know."

When I asked him if anyone in the store could tell me if this was the correct cartridge for my printer, his answer was astonishing to me: "Probably not." Period. End of conversation. He obviously did not care.

Key point worth repeating:

Customer don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care!

About the Author

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