We’ve all had the experience. You walk into a store and can’t find what you need. Searching for an employee, you wonder if you’ve stepped into the Twilight Zone and you’re the last person on the planet. Then you spot an employee…. shuffling slowly down the aisle. You call out, “Excuse me. Where are your widgets?” But he keeps on walking. You catch up to him and say again, “Excuse me. Can you tell me where the widgets are?” He looks at you, shrugs his shoulders, points to the left and mumbles, “cmwlbgxxylkh.” You have no idea what he said but it sounded like Aisle 4, so you thank him, but he’s already walking away.

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“The customer is always right.” There’s an adage from an era gone by that isn’t seen too often today. And nowhere is this shift in attitude more obvious than in customer service. Stop anyone on the street and ask what they think of the average customer service experience, and the reaction is likely to begin with plenty of eye-rolling. Most customers lament customer service, or the lack of it, in the typical retail environment.

But, after years of slowly sliding downhill, retailers are beginning to take notice and create new customer service expectations in an effort to set themselves apart in an overcrowded marketplace. Keenly aware that dissatisfied customers are impacting their bottom lines like never before, and with so many Internet-fueled alternatives to the bricks and mortar store, retail companies and their stock prices are quickly realizing they can’t afford to take the hit. Overwhelmed by globalization and a revolution in low pricing, customer service appears to be the last way in which retailers can impact price increases.

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Once upon a time, women managed the family finances, making decisions about home purchases, clothing, food and other necessary items. If a storeowner provided poor service, there wasn’t much the customer could do. She might gossip with the neighbors about it, or perhaps discuss it over a cup of coffee. But ultimately, there was little competition for the storeowner’s goods and the complaints of one person had little impact. Life – and profits - for the storeowner went on as usual.

Fast forward to 2007. Technology has changed the face of consumerism, empowering shoppers to be smarter, more demanding and more resourceful. With literally hundreds of retailers providing the same products at similar pricing, today’s consumers have endless options and can tailor purchases based not just on price or product availability, but on other variables like return policies, ease of online purchasing and payment options.

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Most retailers would agree customer service could use some improvement. The problem lies in determining what constitutes good customer service and how to provide it.

With so many retailers selling the same merchandise at similar price points, customer service remains an excellent way to for a retailer to stand out in the crowd. But how can retailers determine what the customer really wants?

According to J.C. Penney chairman and chief executive Mike Ullman, “Southwest Airlines has never been considered a full service airline, but it has a high delivery on it promise. It has high customer satisfaction because it fulfills its promise. [In retail], if the register doesn’t work, it doesn’t matter how friendly the person is. If the price isn’t right, the restroom isn’t clean and the dressing room isn’t tidy, these are all disqualifiers.”

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