[Publib] Re: Librarian talents

[Sue Bowser]

Robert is right in that you can teach people to say the right words.  "Welcome to (insert name) Library.  How may I help you?" "Did you find everything you need?" "Have a good day.  Please come again.", etc., etc., etc.  However, Stacy, Kathy and others are right in that you can't make it sincere if the person doesn't like working with the public and insincere mouthing of phrases is not good customer service.  Except for the most brain dead of our users, people know when the person helping them is saying "It's no trouble at all" externally while internally fuming "Yeah, right.  No trouble at all.  Would you also also like me to donate my kidney to you, then come to your house and clean your oven." Patrons can feel the eye roll, even if no eye is physically rolled.  This is a factor of personality and it could take years of analysis, not a few lessons in customer service, to change. End of rant.

As for the monkey comment at the beginning of this thread, there is a patron who comes into our library, always asking for the same two self-help tapes.  Every time I help him he says "I could teach a monkey to do your job, but I couldn't teach him good customer service like you provide."  I always want to reply, "Gee, if I'd known that I could have saved a lot of tuition and several years hard work."

Sue Bowser
Manager, Adult Services
Lancaster Public Library
125 N. Duke St.
Lancaster, PA 17602
(717) 394-2651 x117
Fax (717) 394-3083
sbowser at lancaster.lib.pa.us 




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