As we know it, no matter the quantity or quality of a commodity or the service one is capable of rendering, if there is no one to patronize them it is as good as nothing. This "one" refers to potential customers. In other words, if there are no customers to buy the goods and services offered, a commercial entity practically does not exist.
So, the existence of a customer is integral to the existence of a business hence the reason why there is a desperate effort to get and ultimately retain them. Business outlets even go out of their way to ensure a near-personal relationship with their customers in order to be able to satisfy them. In the long run, there came the commercial concept that “Customers are always right."
This concept, as I mentioned above, is to make sure each customer has both a sense of belonging and satisfaction when services are rendered to them. So, in a case, where one is not okay with what is being offered at a particular time, you then ask for the better and the business representative must comply with that directive.
But Are They Really?
In reality, away from the virtual commercial world, no one is always right. Speaking from the view of one who has been involved in the business - I sold goods at my mother’s shop. In as much as we want to make sure our customers get the best (fair) price and hospitality that should come with it, some could really make you fault and criticize the best you could.
Say a customer wants to buy a vegetable oil, you called the price tag for it, haggle a little and then I had to tell the last price as my boss has said. Now, the customer argued that that could not be what my boss gave me as the price tag; claiming he bought the same goods some days ago whereas the price has changed since then. Does this mean the customer was right? Well, this is literally speaking.
In a formal setting, everyone has their rights and boundaries. Right? I remember a time I was in a banking hall to do some transactions. And in a long queue. A woman, I guess, had an issue with her bank account. The time spent at the customer service desk took longer than normal. At a point, she started to raise her voice and threatened to close her account.
In other to douse the tension, someone asked the bank official attending to the woman what the problem was. She said a sum of money was reported to have been moved from the woman’s account which the woman claimed has a hand of the bank. But the statement of the account showed that the sum of money was deducted at a POS terminal. This implies that someone had used the woman’s ATM card to perform the transaction. The officer then offers that they could only track where the POS terminal is stationed and not reverse the money. It was at that juncture that the woman-customer flared up saying they must fix it. Or else?
Now, at this point, was the woman still right in terms of saying that the money had to be reversed? Absolutely not!
However, I propose that an avenue be created by business outfits to help customers know more about their dealings and correct their deeds in a friendly manner. This will ensure that a customer’s wrong does not happen twice perhaps from the same individual.
Besides, the “… is always right” thing has really served and is still serving its purpose. In a way, it has made sure that we – the customer – get the best of service per time and it also created an avenue by which we can seek redress – not in court – over how a (commercial) activity was conducted. There exists a symbiotic relationship in this realm as the business outfits are also not left out in the positive realm. It helps to help an organization do a check and balance of their employees directly through the eyes of the customers. You know, at times, you do not see the twig in your eyes, other people are the ones who would see it.
This is my entry for the Hive Learners week 36 edition 1 topic which you can check out here.