In 2023, what really sets a business apart from another is top-notch customer service. The following quotes from industry experts offer a treasure-trove of lessons and insights that can supercharge your relationship with customers. Think of them as shortcuts to success: proven advice that can help you build a culture where awesome customer service is second nature. Use these quotes as guiding themes to keep your team focused, make your customers happy, and set your business apart in a way competitors won’t easily copy. Think of them as your cheat sheet for building a business that people love and keep coming back to.

Here are 20 customer service quotes to adopt to your business:

“Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.” – Bill Gates, “Business @ the Speed of Thought”

“Customers don’t expect you to be perfect. They do expect you to fix things when they go wrong.” – Donald Porter, Former VP, British Airways

“Customer service is an opportunity to exceed your customer’s expectations.” – John Jantsch, “Duct Tape Marketing: The World’s Most Practical Small Business Marketing Guide”

“The purpose of a business is to create a customer who creates customers.” – Shiv Singh, “Social Media Marketing For Dummies”

“The more you engage with customers, the clearer things become and the easier it is to determine what you should be doing.” – John Russell, President, Harley Davidson

“Excellent firms don’t believe in excellence – only in constant improvement and constant change.” – Tom Peters, “In Search of Excellence”

“Customer service shouldn’t just be a department; it should be the entire company.” – Tony Hsieh, Former CEO, Zappos

“Satisfying an unhappy customer is not enough; turn them into a raving fan.” – Ken Blanchard, “Raving Fans”

“You are serving a customer, not a life sentence. Learn how to enjoy your work.” – Laurie McIntosh, Speaker and Business Expert

“The single most important thing is to make people happy. If you are making people happy, as a side effect, they will be happy to open up their wallets and pay you.” – Derek Sivers, Founder, CD Baby

“You’ll never have a product or price advantage again. They can be easily duplicated, but a strong customer service culture can’t be copied.” – Jerry Fritz, Speaker and Customer Service Expert

“Customer service is the new marketing.” – Derek Sivers, Founder, CD Baby

“Customers will never love a company until the employees love it first.” – Simon Sinek, “Start with Why”

“Always keep in mind the old retail adage: Customers remember the service a lot longer than they remember the price.” – Lauren Freedman, President, the e-tailing group

“Every company’s greatest assets are its customers, because without customers there is no company.” – Michael LeBoeuf, “How to Win Customers and Keep Them for Life”

“The best advertising you can have is a loyal customer spreading the word about how incredible your business is.” – Shep Hyken, Customer Service Expert

“It is not the employer who pays the wages. Employers only handle the money. It is the customer who pays the wages.” – Henry Ford, Founder, Ford Motor Company

“Good customer service costs less than bad customer service.” – Sally Gronow, Customer Services Manager, Welsh Water

“When you serve the customer better, they always return on your investment.” – Kara Parlin, Business and Customer Service Expert

“The key is to set realistic customer expectations, and then not just to meet them, but to exceed them—preferably in unexpected and helpful ways.” – Richard Branson, Founder, Virgin Group

These quotes sum up the essence of excellent customer service and offer a valuable way of thinking for any business striving to improve their customer interactions.

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