A rare commodity 

The Letters to the Editor column of my local paper recently included three letters under the headline “Customer service a rare commodity.” Each letter made provocative points that I felt were worth sharing. 

“Scams and shoddy service are becoming commonplace. There are few businesses left that actually care about customer service.   But when they do, patronizing those companies is a joy.  Who would have thought that good manners would be not only a differentiator, but also a competitive advantage?”

“I am in sales and have made a very good living in building relationships that last.” 

“The customer is not always right, but they are always the customer. It takes years to build a relationship and just one moment to ruin it.”

 No question, the insurance agencies that excel at customer service stand out. Service-first IS a differentiator and, in the long run, trumps price-only.