What my “9 months old” Grandson told me about Customer Service.

Most are aware of the negotiation skills of  children, how about the communication skills of infants?

Infants verbal language (crying) are well known, however what they are saying with their smiles are also significant, It evokes how early in our lives the Divine Creator has  given us tools to communicate our appreciation of each other and the service we receive.

At 9 months old my Grandson shows his appreciation of my kindness and his feeling of security when in my presence by giving me a “broad’  delayed smile.

Smiling  is not a learnt behavior, it is given to us at birth, yet many adults become uncomfortable   using  it to  show appreciation to their customers, The people who have  given them security by making their vocation and business possible.

We all know how a smile, especially delayed allow us to become “mellower”.

Your body language have more  impact than your verbal language, so if you are interacting with a customer of any culture, gender or age, a smile can leave that person  with feelings of appreciation that could influence what that person does next …. that customer  just might feel so secure he / she will refer you or your company to others.

Smiles have the power to break cultural barriers and indifferences . It’s  given to all human as a constructive weapon to be used to disarm others. Imagine your are visiting an unhappy customer, you are being overcome with anxiety not knowing what the end result will be, you greet your customer with a “delayed” smile and the customer return a smile , for most  the anxiety will be drastically reduced because subconsciously you “feel”  the customer at least appreciate your presence.

If smiles impact positive outcomes ,  why is it not used more frequently as a relationship building tool ? Could it  be that some cultures  ( business included),  consciously feel that smile and warmth  are perceived to be synonymous with weakness? Are the managers and supervisors the role models for your customer service team , are they expected to express their  position power by controlled voice tone and body language ?  This might  be contagious  and practiced by the front-line service people who are seeking the next promotion.

Be the leader…smile and you plus the service you provide will more memorable.

For more info on Multicultural Customer Service Training ;  Please visit ….. https://www.ebonygifts.ca/Customer-Service-Training.html