Adopting a Concierge Mentality

I remember the days when I went to the grocery and got help. The cashier rang me up, bagged my items, and handed those carefully packed bags to a young boy. He loaded them up, wheeled my cart out to my car, and loaded my sacks into the trunk.

Those were the good old days.

Not like the “self-checkout, self-load, self-transport, no-help-offered” approach of modern shopping.

That loss of personal attention seems a sad statement on the state of the world.

Yesterday, I checked on a phone upgrade.

I waited in line. I watched the disgruntled couple in front of us interact with the store employee. As they left, the husband stopped and addressed me. “Don’t waste your time. We’re outta’ here.”

We soon begin to see what he meant.

The “consultant” at the store did NOT have the authority to fix an error on my bill. He did NOT have the ability to create a print-out of my current account. He did NOT believe me when I told him the model number of my phone.

He did NOT even try to address my questions about the current account plan.

“We don’t do that here. You have to do that on the company app,” he stated without apology.

And I sighed.

Gone were the good old days of customer service.

What happened to the idea of putting customers first? Of trying to meet and exceed their expectations? Of working hard so customers don’t have to?

It may seem radical, but actually HELPING clients would be a huge asset to any business.

Call me old-fashioned. I enjoy the personal, helping approach. I want to be a concierge for my customers…someone who takes care of their special needs. Someone who goes out of her way to assist them in building their business. Someone who knows their likes and dislikes in order to serve them better.

It’s true. I want to have such a personal relationship with my clients that I can anticipate their requests before they even ask.

I firmly believe that if you put your customers’ needs first, your business will increase.

But it’s more than that.

Serving your clients is the right thing to do. It’s being compassionate and kind in a harsh and impersonal world.

Concierge-style service is not a luxury. It is a necessity for success.