A Happy Consumer May Start With A Happy Employee

Of all the things consumers complain about when they write to ConsumerAffairs.com – and it covers a lot of ground – the rudeness they perceive on the part of the business representative they are dealing with ranks right up there.

Andrew of Chicago, Ill., wrote to complain about his frustration in dealing with Hotels.com as he unsuccessfully tried to resolve an issue.

"In addition the rep hung up on me, which was very rude," Andrew told ConsumerAffairs.com. "I will never ever use this service again!"

Courtney of Tampa, Fla., describes herself as a one-time loyal Vision Works customer. That ended, she said, when her complaint about her new lenses didn't seem to get her anywhere.

"I then promptly left because of the complete disrespect for me and the lack of service I received," she wrote. "The woman who was working the counter was extremely rude and was of absolutely no help to me."

Rudeness makes it worse

Sometimes, the problem prompting the consumer to complain in the first place seems even more egregious, simply because the consumer feels she was treated with rudeness or contempt when she brought it up.

But if employees who deal with the public are actually that rude, is there a reason? It may be that the employee simply hates her job.

University of Missouri researchers say when the boss spends just a little more time making sure the employees are happy and satisfied, a funny thing happens; the customers seem to be happier and more satisfied. Not only that, they keep coming back and buying more things.

Good management the key

"You might think that as an owner, you only need to pay attention to the customers, providing them with what they want,” said Christopher Groening, assistant professor of marketing in the U. of M. College of Business. “Yet, we found that keeping your employees satisfied with their work experience, providing them with challenges and allowing them to have a sense of ownership in the business can have a tremendous effect on customer satisfaction and loyalty."

Groening said the study found the link between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty is almost twice as strong when you have high employee satisfaction compared to when they are not satisfied with their jobs. This double-positive finding stands in contrast to the idea that a firm can neglect to satisfy their employees as long as they pursue customer satisfaction.

Happy employees

How do you keep employees satisfied? For one thing, Groening says you train them and then let them make decisions that are beneficial to the company, instead of following a simple flowchart and possibly upsetting a customer with the final outcome.

You also hire managers who serve as examples and also can be mentors to employees. If a company policy is established, it should be honored by managers as well as employees. Additionally, managers should help employees know what is expected in order to advance in the company.

Finally, you create good working atmospheres. Offer incentives or intangible benefits, such as flexible working hours, if possible.

For consumers, rudeness on the part of a company employee might be a tip-off that you are not dealing with a very well-run store or business. And while you rightly hold the company responsible, you might also show a little empathy for the rude employee. Chances are they are just as unhappy as you are.