Transitioning from Customer Service to Human Service

If you also live on planet Earth, you’ve had to do some things remotely since the beginning of the pandemic.

I was already used to some online services, like internet banking, for instance. But grocery shopping online made me a little nervous. Would they pay close attention when picking fruits and veggies? Survival instincts won and I learned to move on wondering about the quality of what I would get every time, so I could have food delivered to my doorstep.

I also started researching information about services I had never used before. (There’s a first time from everything, right? Why not during a public health emergency period? — lol)

Technological tools have been allies in this mission, in addition to word of mouth recommendations. Insert search engines, keywords, videos, websites, images and a lot more here. When I felt that I already had a sense of the possibilities and how this service fits my needs, it was time to learn more about budgets and timelines. And off I went, sending WhatsApp messages, e-mails and filling out forms so that strangers could understand what I had imagined. And hopefully they’d be able to help me translate my whimsical ideas into reality within a reasonable budget.

Some things caught my attention in this process:

1. The majority of the people I talked to about service quotes were female. All of them, without exception, greeted me and asked me how I was doing before “getting to business.” They thanked me for my interest, and made me feel as if I was meeting them in-person for the first time.
2. One of these women proposed a video call, so that we could see each other, and I could provide more details about what I had imagined. This increased my confidence in her work, and made me feel optimistic about interacting with an enjoyable professional should I choose her services.
3. Another woman told me she would check her and her team’s schedule before getting back to me. Soon after she directed me to another team member who’d be able to support me and who contacted me on that same day. I appreciated the transparency and open communication.

But one of these women did not reply immediately like the others. The next day, I received a lovely one minute audio message from her, saying this:

“Hi Raquel, how are you? I am currently on vacation, but I saw your message and wanted to respond. At this time, I am unable to help you because of x, y, z reasons. However, thank you for reaching out and I hope we can work together in the future.”

The behaviors above (especially the last one) exemplify what I call Transitioning from Customer Service to Human Service.

This person devoted part of her time off to listen (or read my messages) and respond.

This person explained why she was unable to help me at that time.

This person was kind and left the doors open for future collaboration.

This person provided outstanding human service, not only customer service.

If you asked me:

“Would you be in touch with this person again some time from now, to check her availability?”

My answer would be:

“Absolutely!”

This person was real, professional and transparent with me by acknowledging limitations. Perhaps, without even knowing, she was taking care of herself. Perhaps, without even knowing, she was taking care of me.

I don’t know about you. But I find ghosting quite uncomfortable. Especially in a situation in which I do not know the person, and we do not have any connections in common. It ‘s just me shooting in the dark and hoping that someone on the other side will respond.

Communication has become even more challenging during the pandemic. A significant number of people are overwhelmed, anxious, stressed, coping with Zoom fatigue, among other things. Therefore, more than ever, receiving a simple and human note left me all warm and fuzzy.

Here’s to more human interactions like this!