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Baton Rouge, LA--Excellent customer service is a stepping stone for retail success, and according to Scott Berg, president of Lee Michaels Fine Jewelry, the key lies in practicing empathy, maintaining integrity, and building solid relationships.

[Image via Scott Berg/LinkedIn]

In an article published in Business Report, Berg highlights the importance of empathy for customer service representatives dealing with dissatisfied clients. "Try your best to understand the customer's emotions, needs, and perspectives—in other words, put yourself in the customer's shoes," he says. Integrity, defined by Berg as "doing what you say you're going to do," is equally important.

Berg notes that a common mistake is approaching unhappy customers with preconceived solutions. He suggests starting with a question: "How did we fail to create the experience that we wanted to? What can we do to make sure that it doesn't happen again?"

Investing in employees is another critical aspect of Berg's customer service. The article notes that Lee Michaels Fine Jewelry prioritizes continued education and training for its associates, focusing on company culture, sales process, and product knowledge. "Make sure you're giving them the resources and the training they need to make it right," Berg advises in the article.

Building lasting relationships with customers extends beyond transactions. It involves creating connections based on mutual respect and trust. Berg recounts how some of the company's best customers initially had complaints. "We may have made a mistake one time, but it was how we handled it that got the relationship to where it is today," he says in the article.

With the rise of online shopping, Berg insists that the approach to unhappy customers should remain consistent, whether in-store or online. "We have extraordinary expectations, and that applies whether you're online or in-store," he states, as per the article.

Although building relationships online can be challenging, Berg believes it should always be the goal.

Read the original article in Business Report for more.