Are your customers thrilled by the way your customer service employees interact with them? Learning the answer to this question can literally change the future of your business.

Please understand that your customers do NOT deal with your business because it is just the same as other businesses in your industry. People, who deal with your business repeatedly, do so because your business is different in ways important to them. How your customer service employees treat customers is one of the most important differentiators.

If your cashier, the last person a customer usually sees, is unfriendly, inattentive, slow, or poorly groomed, guess what impression your customers take away when they leave?

If your salespeople are pushy, unhelpful, incompetent or fail to treat prospects to a good experience in any other way, how many of those valuable potential customers will just 'vote with their feet' and go elsewhere to purchase?

If your service, delivery, or installation people are poorly dressed, ill mannered, messy, tardy, or incompetent, will people deal with you again no matter how great your other customer service employees are?

If the customer service employee who answers your telephone is unfriendly, unaccommodating, sounds bored, or gives the impression that the caller is an unwelcome interruption, will that person be likely to call again when they can clearly see your competitors' ads in the Yellow Pages?

Most customer service employees will perform in a satisfactory manner when the boss is observing them but how do they perform when they think no one is watching?

Here is a bit of business wisdom. You have to INSPECT that which you EXPECT!

The best way to apply this wisdom to customer service issues is to hire someone to 'mystery shop' your business. Also, you should let your customer service employees know that mystery-shopping reports impact pay raises, bonuses, and even the continuation of employment.

Although great customer service should be the norm, an excellent mystery shop report could result in an immediate small bonus--a couple of theater tickets along with some recognition at your next staff meeting, for example. Behavior that is rewarded gets repeated.

On the other hand, an unsatisfactory mystery shop report must always result in strong corrective action: training, coaching, a formal reprimand, or if appropriate, even dismissal.

Your mystery shop questions must be tailored to your specific situation but following are some sample questions to get you started.

1. Was this customer service employee appropriately dressed and well groomed?

2. Were you greeted within 30 seconds of your arrival?

3. Did this customer service employee make eye contact and smile?

4. Did this customer service employee ask about your needs and listen attentively when you were speaking?

5. Was this customer service employee knowledgeable about the company's products and services?

6. Was this customer service employee helpful and accommodating?

7. Was this customer service employee polite and respectful?

8. Did this customer service employee thank you for (shopping, buying, etc)?

9. (If work is performed in the customer's home or a delivery made) Did this customer service employee show up on time? Did this customer service employee leave things tidy and clean? Were you comfortable having this person in your home?

10. Overall, was your experience positive enough that you would enjoy coming back again?

11. Overall, was your experience positive enough that you would confidently recommend us to your family and friends?

12. What was it about the interaction with this customer service employee that you liked most?

13. What was it about the interaction with this customer service employee that you liked least?

14. What frustrations did you experience? (On hold for a long time, confusing voice mail, lack of parking, other facility deficiencies, customer service employee chewed gum, too long a wait for an customer service employee to help, etc)

15. Other than identified above, what suggestions do you, the mystery shopper, have to make us a better business with which to deal?

After each mystery shop, have a meeting to discuss the results. Get everyone involved creating ideas about how improvements can be made and specific situations handled.

If you have a business where mystery shopping is impossible or impractical, you can still benefit by calling some customers who did purchase (and some who did NOT). By asking some of the questions listed above, you will learn about the performance of your customer service employees as well as what is important to customers--why the customer chose to either purchase from you or go elsewhere.

In business you always get the results you insist on getting. Used properly, mystery shopping is a valuable tool you can use in your relentless pursuit of excellent customer service and financial success.