First of all let's look at what customer service is all about.

If you go into a shop and talk to anyone who works there you expect to be treated with respect, not sold to and to have en enjoyable experience.

Often that isn't the case, in fact we're often not spoken to at all, or we're asked the silly question, 'can I help you', which virtually everyone knee-jerks an answer to with, 'no thanks, I'm just looking'.

We want help, but funnily enough we don't want to admit it. We need an education on what it is we're buying so we can be confident with out buying decision, but we don't like to admit we're dumb or don't know anything to the sales assistant. So we have a dilemma!

Then if we do find someone who we feel wants to help us, then often we don't relate to them as a person and so we don't have a good emotional experience.

A good emotional experience is what great customer service is all about. Poor or satisfactory service is where you get an average experience that doesn't make you 'feel' better than you did before you went to the store.

The difference between satisfactory and poor service is the difference between the emotions experienced in the buying process.

Let's face it. There are two types of service we experience that we will tell people about PRO-ACTIVELY.

Very bad service, or outstanding service! Typically we have forgotten about the business and persona we have just bought from in about 5 seconds after leaving. Do you think that is conducive to getting a customer to give you lots of referrals?

It all comes down to making your customer feel better than they did before they purchased from you. So customer service...a major part of sales...is really this...

Emotional Upliftment!

What sort of emotions do you want to help your customers to experience?

Confidence, happiness, friendship, joy, removal of fear, reduction of apprehension, or a combination of any of these.

Now let's look at how you can have you customers experience any of these emotions.

First of all we need to understand a couple of proven principles. The first one is that 80% of the population has a fear of sales people. They don't trust them, they don't really like them and they are worried about being ripped off by one of them.

Why do I say this? Because I have asked hundreds of sales people in sales training seminars that I conduct what their beliefs about sales people are. And 80% of sales people believe sales people are liars, rip off merchants, just want you money, talk to much etc. etc. It may seem had to believe, but ask yourself the same question, what do you believe about sales people and see what your own answers are!

So if we as customers believe this about sales people, we're already on the defensive before the sales person opens their mouth. That's often why we tell them, 'we're right, we're just looking'. It's better than saying, 'we don't know anything about the product we'd like to buy but we have the money to buy it and I am sure you will help us to make an informed decision today to buy'.

So to be effective in customer service we must understand people have a basic fear and distrust of sales people, and they think any person who talks to them from any business they want to buy from has sales people. Can you see the Dilemma?

So here's what you need to do to develop outstanding customer service, in the customer's eyes...

Stop being anything like a typical 'sales person'!

Don't say things to customers every other sales person says, instead of saying, 'hi can I help you', why not say, 'hi have you been into our store before?'

You'll be starting off on the right foot and it will sound like you genuinely want to help them!

Then ask questions and keep asking questions, because what do 'sales people' do? They "tell" people what to think and give their "opinion". How much do you think the opinion matters of someone you already think is a liar?

That my friend is the secret to sales, don't be a sales person! Be anything but a "sales person". Be the opposite to everything a typical sales person is, as defined by a customer and your sales and customer service will increase dramatically, and of course so will your profits!

Tim Stokes is a master communicator. He teaches small business owners how to give customers a strong emotional uplifting experience.

Tim's results speak for themselves with clients increasing sales by 357% in 30 days, others selling 50% more at 30% higher prices. This information he touches on briefly above has incredible power when applied to any business no matter what product or service it sells.

Tim Stokes is available for help with your customer service or sales process so visit his website to learn more, at http://www.bbms.com.au