5 Examples of Customer Is Always Right

John Spacey, January 04, 2016 updated on March 18, 2021

The customer is always right is a common business principle that is used to guide customer service strategy, processes and practices. As with many business slogans, the statement is an exaggeration that is meant to illustrate an attitude and approach as opposed to a literal truth. As a principle, the customer is always right can be applied in several ways:

1. Trust

If the customer says something is broken, trust them. From a commercial perspective, there is often nothing to be gained from accusing a customer of being wrong or exaggerating the truth. For example, many retail brands will except returns on a no-questions-asked basis in order to impress customers and build brand value.

2. Perceived Problems vs Problems

If a customer sees a problem with your products or services, it's a problem to them. It is often counterproductive to argue that it's not a problem. For example, a restaurant server might simply apologize that a customer's food is too cold even if they secretly believe it was served at the right temperature.

3. Respect

Customers want you to respect them as individuals. It's often more productive to respect your customers without judgement. This includes treating them with politeness and respecting their intelligence by listening to them with intent to understand. For example, a technical service representative may listen intently to a customer's description of a problem, even if the customer describes the problem in difficult to understand non-technical terms.

4. Feedback Loop

It's typically impossible to incorporate every customer suggestion into your products or processes. However, it's often useful to consider each suggestion with the assumption that it could be helpful.

5. Product Design

It's easier to sell a product that customers already want than to change their minds about something. If customers are convinced that pickup trucks are great, give them pickup trucks.

Overview: Customer Is Always Right
Type	Business Principle
Definition	A business principle that suggests that businesses treat customers with respect and value their perspective.
Origin	Popularized by successful retailers such as Harry Gordon Selfridge in the late 19th century.
Related Concepts	Customer Service Principles