A good retail business owner knows that the customers are smarter than he is, right? Knowing what your customers want and need is key to retaining them.  As customers, we all know what makes for bad customer service, right? We don’t  have to run a store to be that smart.  Here are the seven sure-fire ways to keep customers from coming back:

1)      Rudeness.  You can’t do it.

2)      Broken pledges. If you promise something, deliver. You need to develop the customer’s trust.

3)      Arguments. That old adage about the customer always being right is, well, right.

4)      Indifference: All your employees and you must be sure to care about your customer’s problems, even if you have to fake it.

5)      Impatience: A customer’s request is the reason you’re in business. Go out of your way to help.

6)      Misinformation: Make sure you know the right answer to a customer’s question before giving a bad one.

7)      Gloom and doom: A grumpy negative attitude will scare a customer away. In person and on the phone, an employee has to be smiling. Always.

A mystery shopping company such as Customer Perspectives can help determine if any of these seven sins is occurring in your retail shop.