A Sense of Urgency

What excuse could any company representative give that would excuse a lack of urgency to meet the consumers' need? How does the lack of a smile impact the customers' experience?

In a restaurant, a patron orders the full rack of ribs.....should the patron have to wait for wetnaps and a bone plate or should it already be on the table when the meal arrives? How low in the glass should the sweet tea be before the server freshes the glass?

In a department store, how long should a shopper have to wait for a sales associate to acknowledge their presence when the customer wants to purchase that new washer/dryer combo?

When calling a business, how many rings should it take before someone answers with courtesy? How long should the caller wait on hold?

A sense of urgency is one of the most effective tools in the arsenal for providing exemplary customer service. How accurately and urgently the server, sales representative, receptionist addresses customer concerns can make or break the customers' experience.

In a restaurant setting, servers who exhibit a sense of urgency give better service than those who do not. A great server will anticipate patron needs before they arise and act accordingly. When the patron orders a meal with fries, the server should have ensured the existence of ketchup in the bottle BEFORE the patron picks it up.
Napkins can be a pet peave...please put some on the table so the patron does not have to request them.
Linguine dishes should come with a spoon for twirling a manageable mouthful of pasta.
Straws! Those should be automatic....and they should NOT look as if they've ridden around in an apron for months.

In a department store setting, sales associates should make eye contact as soon as possible. Many times it is more than obvious the store is understaffed....but acknowledgement will go a long way to ensure the customer is friendlier when it is their turn.

Telephone customer service, as cliche as it sounds, customers really can hear a smile....not so surprising, they can hear nonchalance, poor attitude and impatience as well. Phone reps who are eager to help go the extra step to answer questions. Receptionists whose main function is to transfer calls should do so with a minimum of fuss while wearing that audible smile.

It is a sad reality that sometimes customer service reps are underpaid....dealing with the public is not always easy and is sometimes no fun at all. Customers can be rude or hard to please. The general public is often ignorant of the job customer service associates have to perform and often just don't care.
Understood.
With that understanding, the power to make customer interaction as pleasant an experience as possible is in the hands of the representative. Walk faster, smile sooner, make eye contact....A smile, a sense of urgency....these things are tools of the trade.
Use them.