Delivering great customer service is such a mystery to so many. And to improve it, the experts swoop in with myriad concepts and “the 64.25 steps to greater service performance.” They dive into daylong workshops to map the customer journey, determine pain points, and create corrective action plans.

But even with all of these efforts, things still suck. There’s still the indifference, lack of urgency, and inattention to detail. Why?

Could it be that we’ve over-complicated it? Have we made service a rabbit hole of complex formulas, systems, and frameworks? Like just about everything, it seems likely.

But is it that hard, really? No. Service is actually a pretty simple thing. It’s just helping people accomplish things. Whether it’s getting a burger or complex software, it’s just helping people get it.

Does this mean that those 64.25 steps are useless or that mapping to look for pain points and places to improve the process is meaningless? Of course not. There can be many moving parts that need to be fixed and behavioral concepts that, once understood, can help people perform better. It’s just that over-complication can do, and often does, more harm than good.

So, when it comes to your employee manual and how to provide great service, here’s the line that should begin it all, “If you can help, do it!”

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