We came across a post at Consumerist.com that claimed that Geico’s customer service representatives are too polite. Should we even complain about this? Usually, we complain about rudeness. However, Laura Northrup, the post’s author, has a point: too much politeness can interfere with efficiency. Too much politeness (thanking someone after every interaction, being excessively apologetic) can come off as being fake. It’s like being complimented too much–we suspect that those compliments are not genuine.
Customer service should definitely be polite, but it should be genuine. Too much comes off as smarmy, obsequious, and just doesn’t feel right. It also can interfere with efficiency. Generally, customers want to solve a problem or get an answer as quickly as possible. Customer service reps can’t spend lots of time with small talk and chit chat. They must deal with the issue at hand, while still being pleasant.
The opposite of too polite is not rude. It is efficient, down to business. Rudeness is never acceptable in customer service. Customer service reps should have enough common sense to understand to know where to draw the line. In the Geico case to which Northrup points, it seems the customer service reps have been instructed to say thank you after every single interaction. There is no need for that. That is not how we normally deal with people. This may also be a case of teaching people to follow a script rather than to use their natural people skills.
Being polite cannot be scripted. Good manners can be taught but common sense, and knowing how to treat people may be an innate skill. Perhaps that is what hiring managers should be looking for.
Tags: common sense in customer service, genuine customer service, polite customer service