Let's say you go to a certain store to buy something, but you are not sure what it's called. You describe it as best as you can only to get a cold response from the attendants who say, "We don't have that here." The next store is miles away from you, so you decide to stay in the same store to look around. Then, your eyes land on the exact product that you need or want. The attendants said that it wasn't there, but it was there. How do you feel?

Another scenario is, You go into a store, and the staff know you by name and greet you with a genuine smile on their faces. Without having to put any effort into reaching out to the staff, they ask you questions about what you need from the store and what your plans are for that item or product. How do you feel?

With no doubt, the first scenario made you sad, angry and disappointed. The second scenario should have made you feel satisfied. Those two scenarios presented two different customer experiences or impressions that people have of a certain brand. Note that the two primary touch points that create the customer experience are people and products.

All of this points to customer service. Customer service is the assistance and advice provided by a company to those people who buy or use its products or services.

Good customer service has become more crucial. Why?

First, customers don't want the frustration of waiting unnecessarily, being ignored, or facing inefficiency when shopping. When this happens, they won't hesitate to leave the store or shop.

Secondly, nowadays, customers are more likely to reject bad service in this century when a competitor can offer the same products and price without the hassle. These include online retail stores that are now growing significantly in case you haven't heard or noticed.

Lastly, in this digital age, good customer reviews spread fast, but negative customer reviews spread even faster, with these negative reviews on your products, it's difficult to make a sale, get customers or keep your business up and running. In my opinion, negative reviews are time bombs. They explode whenever a lead lands his or her eyes on them. After the explosion, the lead or customer starts having second thoughts about making a purchase.

"American consumers are willing to spend more with companies that provide outstanding service, and they will also tell, on average, twice as many people about bad service than they are about good service. Ultimately, great service can drive sales and customer loyalty," said Jim Bush, executive vice president, of World Service.

What has been covered in this article is that Customer service is no longer an option; it is vital for a positive retail customer experience. Now, let's go to the qualities of good customer service that stand out. This is the ranking of the qualities based on importance:

1. Friendliness
2. Empathy
3. Promoting fairness
4. Enabling customer control and
5. Sharing of relevant information.

All qualities are important to keep in mind when the customer comes in.