10/15/2026
As a business owner I felt this in my soul! Service is everything and I strive to give my clients a 5 star experience.
THIS IS A GREAT RUNDOWN!! I'm not the author, I borrowed it to share. It's funny and sad all at the same time. Our future might be bright but it's also muddy as heck.
Here’s my Rant for today. I own a business and we have fantastic customer service. My experience as a consumer can be summed up by my following rant.
Customer Service: Has Anyone Seen It Lately?
I have a business idea.
Let’s bring back customer service.
Apparently, it’s becoming a rare and highly specialized skill.
Remember when you could call a business and—this is going to sound crazy—a human being answered the phone?
You’d say, “Hi, I’d like to make an appointment.”
And they’d say, “Sure. How about Tuesday at 10?”
That was it.
No app. No portal. No password. No verification code. No chatbot asking you 14 questions before finally telling you to visit the website.
Today, you call a business and hear:
“For faster service, please visit our website.”
Faster for whom?
Then you go to the website, create an account, invent another password you’ll never remember, verify your email, verify your phone number, prove you’re not a robot, select six drop-down menus, and finally request an appointment.
Notice I said REQUEST an appointment.
You haven’t actually accomplished anything yet.
Then you wait.
Nobody calls.
Nobody emails.
Nobody confirms anything.
So you call again.
Naturally, nobody answers.
You leave a voicemail explaining everything.
Two days later, somebody calls you back and asks:
“So, what can we help you with?”
Well, apparently we can start by locating the voicemail I spent five minutes leaving.
Then you finally arrive for your appointment and the person behind the counter looks at you like you wandered in off the highway.
“Do you have an appointment?”
I certainly hope so. I’ve communicated with three people, filled out two forms, received four automated text messages, created an online account and surrendered enough personal information to qualify for a mortgage.
Then comes my favorite part.
You get to explain the entire story again.
Why?
Because apparently nobody takes notes anymore.
I run a business, and I understand that people are busy. Employees get overwhelmed. Technology changes. Mistakes happen.
But customer service really isn’t that complicated.
Answer the phone.
Return the message.
Take notes.
Confirm the appointment.
Communicate with your coworkers.
And when a customer walks through the door, try not to look completely surprised that they actually showed up.
Maybe we need to start teaching customer service in high school and college.
Forget Advanced Calculus for a minute.
How about:
Customer Service 101: How to Return a Phone Call
Followed by:
Communication 201: Writing Something Down So the Customer Doesn’t Have to Tell You Four Times
And for advanced students:
Professionalism 301: Doing What You Said You Were Going to Do
Here’s the funny part: This is actually great news for business owners.
The bar has gotten so low that good customer service has become a competitive advantage.
You don’t always have to be the cheapest.
You don’t need the fanciest office.
You don’t need another app.
Sometimes you can absolutely amaze a customer by doing something revolutionary:
Answer the phone, listen to them, remember what they told you, and do what you promised.
They may be so shocked they’ll tell their friends.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what we used to call:
Customer service.
