During these difficult times there seems to be an upside for the customer. The Institute of Customer Service recently carried out a large survey and it would appear that customer service seems to be improving - perhaps due to the economic downturn.

As we increase our search for value, we are also becoming more discerning and less tolerant of poor customer service companies, many companies realize if they are to have any chance of retaining customers, they need to sharpen up their act in this vital area of their business.

It's important for you and your company to review your customer service policies and procedures and depending on the size of your business, there are various customer service methods you can adopt, such as customer service surveys etc, it's also a good idea to assess how you answer telephone calls or how your company greets customers face to face, even if you only study these two areas of you business, you will gauge how your customers feel about you, that way you can adjust it to suit. Customer Service Training should be ongoing, and if you are small company empower each other to give feedback, this way you can catch any mistakes that could damage your business. Some companies are completely oblivious to the way they treat customers.

I had personal experience at a well known national tyre fitting company. Many of you have probably experienced the lad-ish-ness of a tyre shop, shouting, loud music are all part of the atmosphere, I hate going to these places and on this particular occasion, I was greeted by the manager who gave me no eye contact and a very abrupt manner, I'm sure, if you are like me, you have no idea about tyres, beyond the fact they are black and made of rubber, what woman does? I'm pretty sure not many men who would either, so with a shrug off my shoulders and that pleading look on my face, he puts his out hand, making a gesture which I decipher as meaning he wanted my keys, "which one is it? He asks, "The Freelander" I reply. He returns a couple of minutes later and then spouts some sort of gobble de gook along the lines of 155 - 25 - hr (that is totally made up, but I think you get my point), which I gather when translated is the size and type of my tyres.

We discuss the replacement and cost and I am asked to take a seat in a god forsaken waiting room with one of those nasty instant coffee machines. He advised me it would be about half an hour, so I sit and wait, reading last Fridays Sun newspaper and as I am engulfed in a story about Fred Blogs, aged 42, an axe wielding fireman from Sitting Bourne who had murdered his wife in a drunken rage, whilst dressed in her undies (made that bit up too), my attention is caught by one of the managers underlings who was calling out to a customer who vehicle was ready, nothing wrong with this in principal, but he was identifying them by the make of their car. So the guy next to me was "FORD FOCUS!", then there was "CORSA!" and so on, until it was my turn, so as I was duly summoned by my new name, I had been considering my response for at least 15 minutes as I prepared myself "FREELANDER!" he shouted.

I guess he would be around 20 years old and I replied "I bet you're a real charmer when you go out on the pull aren't you, I reckon you watch the girls get out of their car and you are straight in there, 'all right Fiesta, can I buy you a drink?' You are a real charmer mate!" To my surprise his face lit up and he laughed, as did his manager beside him as they saw the funny side, they opened up and it turned out they were really nice guys, we then had a laugh about his prowess when chatting up girls, but if I hadn't challenged their behavior they would have come away none the wiser. I did it in a jokey way and they probably didn't take the lesson from it. It would have been so easy for them to take a name and address you accordingly, what a difference it would have made to the experience.

Well it’s given me a business idea, set up a womens only tyre shop, served by women, for women - I think there might be mileage in that one, please makes your check payable to...

Joking aside, just a few changes in how you approach customer service could pay dividends and of course it doesn't have to cost a penny.