“I could agree with you, but then we’d both be wrong.” ~Oscar Wilde
Everyone loves a good quote, at least I do.
At their best, they can inspire, motivate and get you on the right path. In business, the best quotes talk about attitude, building relationships, persistence, perseverance and employee engagement, all the things that are important to creating great service, increasing customer retention, and keeping employees committed.
The goal was to pick 10 quotes that resonated, but that proved to be very difficult, as the more I read, the more I wanted to include. I started with over 100 quotes to pick from, whittled it down to 50, then 30, and settled on 15.
So here, in no particular order, are 15 customer service and business quotes you can use to inspire your team.
1. “A customer is the most important visitor on our premises. He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an interruption in our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an outsider in our business. He is part of it. We are not doing him a favor by serving him. He is doing us a favor by giving us an opportunity to do so.” ~Mahatma Gandhi
2. “The rise of the citizen review site is a sobering development. No longer are you on top of the mountain, blasting your marketing message down to the masses through your megaphone. All of a sudden, the masses are conversing with one another. If your service or product isn’t any good, they’ll out you.” ~David Pogue
3. “Whether you are big or small, you cannot give good customer service if your employees don’t feel good about coming to work.” ~Martin Oliver
4. “Getting service right is more than just a nice thing to do; it’s a must do. American consumers are willing to spend more with companies that provide outstanding service — ultimately, great service can drive sales and customer loyalty.” ~Jim Bush
5. “If you make customers unhappy in the physical world, they might each tell six friends. If you make customers unhappy on the internet, they can each tell 6,000.” ~Jeff Bezos
6. Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning. ~Bill Gates
7. “If we consistently exceed the expectations of employees, they will consistently exceed the expectations of our customers.” ~Shep Hyken
8. “If you are not taking care of your customer, your competitor will.” ~Bob Hooey
9. “To build a long-term, successful enterprise, when you don’t close a sale, open a relationship.” ~Patricia Fripp
10. “The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” ~Walt Disney
11. “Everything you’ve ever wanted is on the other side of fear.” ~George Addair
12. “The key is to set realistic customer expectations, and then not to just meet them, but to exceed them — preferably in unexpected and helpful ways.” ~Richard Branson
13. “Traditional corporations, particularly large-scale service and manufacturing businesses are organized for efficiency. Or consistency. But not joy. Joy comes from surprise and connection and humanity and transparency and new…If you fear special requests, if you staff with cogs, if you have to put it all in a manual, then the chances of amazing someone are really quite low.” ~Seth Godin
14. “A lot of people have fancy things to say about customer service, but it’s just a day-in, day-out, ongoing, never-ending, persevering, compassionate kind of activity.” ~Christopher McCormick
15. “Always keep in mind the old retail adage: Customers remember the service a lot longer than they remember the price.” ~Lauren Freedman
And one more, just for good luck:
16. “Businesses often forget about the culture, and ultimately, they suffer for it because you can’t deliver good service from unhappy employees.” ~Tony Hsieh
There are many more wonderful quotes to choose from. What are some of your favorites? Better yet, start creating your own.
Paul Rutter
Paul Rutter is a customer loyalty, repeat business and customer service expert, a keynote speaker, corporate trainer and business author. He has had the unique opportunity to live with his customers and co-workers for months at a time traveling the world, and shares his experiences with land based businesses. For more information on More Than Perfect® Service, contact Paul at Paul@PaulRutterSpeaks.com, follow him on Twitter on @RealPaulRutter or visit him on Facebook/PaulRutterSpeaks.
