Time to put our best foot forward

The skies are spitting out rain instead of snow, and the temperatures are warming up. The calendar has turned to May, which can only mean one thing: tourism season is upon us.

If you look outside, you can already see that guests from all over are coming to town. There are less and less places to park, and more and more people walking down the streets. It will seem like it was only a blink of an eye before we are celebrating our independence with a fireworks show and then hearing the rumbling of motorcycles for the annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.

Tourism is the lifeblood of the community, and as always, we need to put our best foot forward so that people not only come to Custer, but want to come back and want to tell others to come here. As the old saying goes, you never get a second chance to make a first impression. A wave, a smile or a friendly greeting can go a long way toward making Custer a place people want to return to and want to spread the news about whenever they go home.

Good customer service is a revenue generator. It gives customers a complete, cohesive experience that aligns with an organization’s purpose.

Helpscout.com reports that according to a variety of studies, U.S. companies lose more than $62 billion annually due to poor customer service, and seven out of 10 consumers say they’ve spent more money to do business with a company that delivers great service.

Understanding that customer service is the cornerstone of your customer experience helps you leverage it as an opportunity to delight customers and engage them in new, exciting ways.

Helpscout goes on to say there are four key principles of good customer service: It’s personalized, competent, convenient and proactive. These factors have the biggest influence on the customer experience.

Good customer service always starts with a human touch. Personalized interactions greatly improve customer service and let customers know that your company cares about them and their problems. Instead of thinking of service as a cost, consider it an opportunity to earn your customer’s business all over again.

We know sometimes you are just having a bad day, or the customer is being rude, or myriad other factors can contribute to you just not wanting to deal with customers on any given day, but we have to remember that if we can put that aside and give the customer great customer service, we are helping the greater good.

We wish everyone the best summer imaginable, and to our guests, we welcome you to Custer and the beautiful Black Hills. We thank you for making this a stop on your trip or your home base for your vacation, and we’re sure you’ll find our amenities and attractions are second to none 

Let’s have a great summer!