Mark Hurst wrote an interesting post today about an experience he had with an office supply company today.

In his post, he made some assertions about the nature of Customer Customer Service that I didn't quite agree with - although I normally agree with Mark wholeheartedly. He also posed a good questions: Is customer service the same as customer experience?

First things first:

Mark Wrote: “Customer service is the job of front-line workers, servicing customer requests for help - via an 800 number, e-mail, or a retail desk.”

I was surprised that he would make this assertion. This is only true if you're looking at it through a narrow lens.

Many of us understand that Customer Service involves a heckuva lot more than customer-facing. It is not merely the job of front-line workers. Customer Service begins with the policies that govern the management of customer need. These policies are responsible for shaping customer interfacing and service delivery, and work bi-directionally across the supply chain – impacting the suppliers who create and ship goods, as well as the service reps we encounter in any channel.

We talk alot on this weblog about the five components of experience: customers, environments, brand(s), platform (process, policy, people, technology), and interfacing.

While Mark's problem wasn’t a Customer Service environment or interfacing problem (accessing service within the phone channel, or talking to the rep), it was very much a Customer Service brand issue (faulty merchandise) compounded by a Customer Service platform issue (poor return and refund policies).

While Mark is right that a larger cast of characters is responsible for hosing up his customer experience, it doesn't change the nature of his problem. Today's executives are paid to **own** Customer Service. Whether they act like it or not, this makes them stewards of our experience. The way they coordinate service - across the five CEM disciplines - will dictate success.

Nordstrom knows this. Customer Service at Nordstrom is not merely about the people they hire and train – it’s about the holistic customer service experience they offer, from the quality products they offer, the purchasing environments and the policies that govern service delivery and customer satisfaction. Good Customer Service has created the Nordstrom brand.

Customer Service is perhaps the most important component in shaping Customer Experience. But are they the same? Technically, no. However, it's significant to remember that Customer Experience and Customer Service are so strongly, perceptually bound in the minds of customers they can often be equated as the same thing.

...and perception really matters.