He thought he was just being nice. Little did he know.

In my work, I often describe the three pillars of customer experience: Customer Care, Customer Support, and Customer Service.

Customer Care is based on normal interactions. It is usually governed by policies and procedures that influence how phones are answered, orders are processed, and business is conducted. Interpersonal skills such as politeness, listening, and anticipating needs are common traits in customer care.

When I speak about this, many will roll their eyes as if to say, “why are you wasting our time talking about something so basic?”

But Customer Care is far from basic. As we can see in this video, something as simple as a handshake can have a profound impact on the experience delivered.

If Customer Care was so basic, we would be seeing it more often. Instead, customers are often faced with rudeness, apathy, lack of interest, and decisions based on policy instead of situation.

I would suggest that this trend creates countless opportunities for any business that is willing to up their game. All they need to do is be polite and show some genuine kindness.

Perhaps that really is basic.

Saying please and thank you, listening to a request with intent, looking for ways to make things easier for the customer – these are the little things that can make all the difference.