What Is Good Customer Service

Posted on May 30, 2025 by Danny Snow

I asked Google what were the most commonly searched questions related to customer service and the question with one of the highest search volumes was “What is good customer service?” That was being searched 2 to 3 times more than questions like “What is great customer service?” or “What is excellent customer service?”

It got me thinking as to why so many more people would be interested in only learning or caring about good customer service and how to provide it, when you could set yourself apart by striving to be excellent when delivering customer satisfaction. 

Because the truth is, that good customer service you're striving for, it’s going to kill your business.

Now I know that might sound a little crazy. But stick with me here.

See, here's what most business owners don't get: just being good isn’t going to cut it.

Most companies are good, and at this point, good is just average.

Now, Your customers? They're not just comparing you to your competitors anymore. They're comparing you to Amazon, to Disney, to that little coffee shop that remembers their dog's name.

And when you're just good... you're forgettable.

Now, you clicked to read this article that’s titled "What Is Good Customer Service" so my guess is that you’re interested in ways to improve customer service in your business, which is a great thing and I’m happy to have you here.

But I don’t want to provide you with the tools to just be good enough. I want to help you move beyond that and get to a level that you can provide excellent customer service so that your customers never even want to think about doing business with someone else.

So, I'm going to show you 10 traits that separate the businesses that survive from the ones that THRIVE. And more importantly, how you can turn each one into a loyalty driving, profit-boosting machine.

My goal with this article is to share with you key customer service skills that are necessary to deliver great customer service.

RESPONSIVENESS and PROACTIVE ANTICIPATION 

Let's start with responsiveness. Most businesses think being "responsive" means answering the phone on the third ring or responding to emails or inquiries within 24-hours.

Here's the difference: Good service and what most expect is to receive a response within 24-hours. That might meet customer expectations because as customers, we’ve almost been conditioned to expect that from most companies. Excellent service, on the other hand, is receiving a phone call, email, or text back in under an hour. Preferably, even faster.

Now, there might be the need to research some elements of the product or service, or possibly of their account before you can actually get back to the customer with a full response.

And that’s understandable. But if I’m the customer and I receive that call, email or text right away that at least lets me know my message has been received and they’re working on it and will get back to me with the full response. Now, I’m feeling better and more confident that I’ll actually receive the response I need.

Otherwise, if I’m sitting around waiting hoping to hear from customer support, I’m likely going to reach out to several other companies and I’m likely to be more inclined to do business with the first person that actually reaches out to make contact.

Let’s also look at responsiveness from another perspective.

Good service responds. Excellent service ANTICIPATES.

Picture this: Your delivery truck breaks down.

Good service waits for angry customers to call, then scrambles to explain.

Excellent service? They're already texting customers with updates, offering discounts, and arranging alternatives before anyone even knows there's a problem. Those are problem-solving skills that should be part of any customer service philosophy. 

Here’s what you can do in your business: 

Make this part of your customer service strategy. Respond quickly. Few things help you stand out more and set you apart like responding faster than a prospect or customer thinks you will. I love hearing, “Wow, that was fast” anytime a customer fills out a form on our site and I get them on the phone moments later. And set up automated alerts for ANY potential service disruption. Don't wait for customer complaints to find you.

Care = EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE + ACTION 

How often do you feel like a company or any of the employees actually care about you? Yeah, they care about your money and how to get as much as possible from you, but rarely do I ever feel like someone truly cares about me, the individual. This is where most businesses completely miss the boat.

Good service recognizes something is happening and perhaps weaves it into the service interaction by saying something like “happy birthday” in passing or offers a small, “I’m sorry that happened to you” before moving on with their day.

Excellent service? They FEEL your emotion... and then they DO something about it.

My Dad recently told me this story that highlighted this difference perfectly. He was with his mom out at Raglan Road Irish Pub at Disney Springs. My Grandma is 92 and from Ireland and so my parents casually mentioned that to the hostess before they were seated.

It wasn’t long until the manager, who was also from Ireland, came over to greet her and share stories about their Irish heritage. He even brought over some Irish whiskey’s for her to try and it gives me a lot of joy to hear about my grandma sitting there taking shots of whiskey.

There was no extra charge. Just pure human connection.

My grandma loved that experience and told everyone she knows about it.

Here’s what you can do in your business: 

Train your team to listen for emotional cues and empower them to act on them immediately. If you can identify the customer needs or wants, it'll make it much easier to deliver personalized service in most of your customer interactions.

ACTIVE LISTENING and the POWER of Remembering 

Here's where it gets interesting...

Good customer service reps listen to what you're saying.

Excellent reps? They remember what you said three months ago.

Imagine walking into your favorite restaurant and the server says, "Hey John! How did your daughter's cheer competition go? You want your usual table by the window?"

That's not just service. That's relationship building. And relationships? They're worth their weight in gold.

Here’s what you can do in your business:

Create a simple customer notes system. Track personal details, preferences, and past conversations. Use them to improve the customer experience. You’ll be amazed at the power that remembering a detail about someone can have.

Turn KNOWLEDGE into GUIDANCE 

Knowledge is good. And it’s also expected. But guidance? That's where the money is.

Anyone can recite product specs when helping a customer. But can your team guide customers to the BEST solution for their specific situation?

Here's what I mean: Customer asks for Product A. Good service sells them Product A.

Excellent service asks questions, discovers they actually need Product B, and in the process saves them money and creates a customer for life.

Most service professionals focus on the one sale in front of them without seeing the big picture and the lifetime value of that customer. By taking a few extra minutes to really learn about them and their situation, you’re likely to uncover the true need and can then point them in the right direction.

Even if this first sale might be less than it would have been had you simply sold them what they asked for, you’re likely to get that back and then a lot more over the lifetime of doing business with them once they’ve learned they can trust you to really solve their problem.

Here's what you can do in your business: 

During your customer service training, teach your team to ask "What are you actually trying to accomplish?" before recommending anything.

CONSISTENCY that leads to PREDICTABLE DELIGHT 

Consistency. This is where most businesses completely fall apart.

Good service means you're solid... most of the time. But the experience can vary based on what shift you’re dealing with or which employee.

Excellent service? Every single service experience feels like magic. Every time. No exceptions.

Think about it: Disney, Chick-fil-A, Dutch Bros Coffee. You know EXACTLY what you're getting before you walk in the door. And it’s because of that predictability that people go out of their way and spend way more than they should and why they have legions of happy customers.

Here’s what you can do in your business:

Learn every possible customer touchpoint. Create standards for what excellent service should look like at each point. Measure them. Obsess over them. Reap the rewards of ongoing customer loyalty.

Turn COURTESY into GENUINE CONNECTION 

When my daughter was 4 years old, she asked what I do for work. Thinking about how to explain customer service to a 4 year old, I said, "We teach people to be nice to other people." She just stared back at me and said, "Shouldn’t they already know how to do that?"

It was so cute and true. Everyone should know how to do that; that’s something we learn at a young age. But it also goes deeper than that because being nice is needed but there’s a lot more to it. It’s the genuine connection that has become so rare today.

I'm talking about eye contact that says "I see you." Compliments that aren't scripted. Seeking out customer contact rather than avoiding it unless absolutely needed. Questions about your day that they actually want to hear the answer to.

That's the kind of memorable customer service that can't be faked. And when you feel that true genuine connection? It creates customers who would rather pay more for you than go anywhere else.

Here’s what you can do in your business:

This is one that messes up a lot of companies. Hire for personality. Train for skill. Always. Almost anyone can learn the technical aspects of a job, it’s next to impossible to train someone to be caring and empathetic when they haven’t been that way for the majority of their lives. You’ll save yourself a lot of time, money and heartache by following that piece of advice.

IDENTIFY PROBLEMS and CREATE RECOVERY MOMENTS

Here's where excellent service companies make their money...

Good customer service fixes problems.

Excellent service turns screw-ups into loyalty goldmines.

Your food's late? Good service remakes it.

Excellent service? They comp the meal, throw in dessert, give you a gift card, and have the manager personally apologize with a handwritten note.

That customer just became your biggest advocate.

Take it a step further, identify the problems or issues your customers consistently have. If you’re not sure where to start, ask those that work on the front lines. Because they hear it every day. Then bring a group of team members together to brainstorm ways to either eliminate those issues or identify ways that you can at least alleviate them when they do happen.

Here’s what you can do in your business:

Create a "service recovery" playbook. When things go wrong, go OVERBOARD to make it right. Share customer service stories regularly in your meetings. When something worked well, make sure everyone knows about it.

FOLLOW-UP and take OWNERSHIP

Always, Always, Always Follow-up. Most businesses think this means sending a "How did we do?" email or a customer satisfaction survey.

That's not follow-up. That's lazy.

Real ownership means calling back to make sure the solution worked. Checking in a week later. Taking responsibility for the entire experience from start to finish. Don’t be one of those companies that stops contact after the sale has been made. Excellent customer service means you're always there for them.

Here’s what you can do in your business:

Assign ownership of every customer issue to ONE person. They own it until the customer is thrilled.

PERSONALIZATION

Using my name? That's good.

Knowing exactly how I like my experience? That's excellent.

Your barista knows your drink. Your mechanic knows your car's quirks. Your accountant knows your business inside and out.

This isn't just service. It's relationship currency. And it's worth more than any discount you could ever offer.

Here’s what you can do in your business:

Track customer information like preferences, habits, and history. Use technology to remember what humans forget.

COMMUNICATION and EXPERIENCE DESIGN

Last one, and this is a big one

Good service keeps you informed.

Excellent service designs a seamless customer experience so you never feel confused, frustrated, or lost in the first place.

Every step is smooth. It feels effortless... but it's actually the result of obsessive planning.

Here’s what you can do in your business:

Map every step of your customer journey. Eliminate friction. Add wow moments and exceed customer expectations.

So here's the million-dollar question for your business:

Are you settling for "good enough"... or are you ready to dominate your market with excellent service?

Because here's the truth: Your competitors are probably stuck in "good" mode. Which means there's a massive opportunity sitting right in front of you.

If you're ready to turn your service into a profit-generating machine, I've got something that'll help:

This is a link to my Stan store, https://stan.store/DannySnow, where you will find three FREE resources that you can use to build a loyalty driving customer experience.

The first one is the Ultimate Customer Experience Checklist to identify areas where you might be falling short.

Next is our Customer Experience Mapping tool that you can use to map out each step of your customer journey and build in excellent service moments along the way. You can also watch this video that will show you exactly how to use this tool, https://youtu.be/sm27ig6nXAw. 

And then finally, you’ll get access to the The 5 Service Mistakes That Kill Businesses - And exactly how to fix them.

Grab all three free right here: https://stan.store/DannySnow

Remember: Good service keeps you in business. Excellent service makes you rich.

Danny Snow is a customer experience expert as well as a keynote speaker. You can connect with Danny on LinkedIn or email him at danny@snowassociates.com. You can also find additional articles from Danny at https://snowassociates.com/blog.