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Is the adage 'the customer is always right,' still true?
Do you still practice the belief that the 'customer is always right?' Have times changed?
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3 Answers
In the restaurant and hotel business, we refer to them as guests and no, the guest is rarely right, but the guest is always the guest and it's ok for them to be wrong. It's part of the foundation of true hospitality.
The customer may not be right, but they do need to be listened to. they need to be respected and ALL their concerns need to be addressed. If what they are asking is not possible, alternatives should be suggested. A workable and mutually acceptable solution needs to be negotiated.
Imagine arriving late to work. You blame it on the fact that your alarm didn't ring, or that traffic was unusually congested, or because there was construction on your usual on ramp. Later that day, several vendors arrive late for a meeting. You blame their tardiness on not being prepared, or not valuing your time.
Attribution bias is an interesting phenomenon.
The phrase "the customer is not always right" is gaining in search popularity at the same rate as the original adage. http://3bl.me/c8fvze (google insights graph). What's fascinating to me is that "the company is not always right" has almost 0 search volume (another google insights graph http://3bl.me/8nk76e ).
So, though many agree that "the customer is not always right" but that it is okay for them to be wrong; very few will go so far as to admit that their company, or they themselves, are not always right.
I do think the times have changed -- with advancements in customer segmentation and behavioral analysis demonstrating that different customers have different definitions of what is right, and that there's often an "aggregate correct answer" gleaned either from this research or from internal brand management -- so that the adage is no longer generally accepted.
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