• Failure to properly define the customer service mission. When a company does not understand that a major goal in customer service is keeping customers it may spend $100 to have field sales personnel performing functions that the customer service department could handle as well or better for only $20. In actuality, the ratio is even higher when salespeople are performing service tasks that take them away from their primary job of selling. As one example, many companies require their field sales people to inspect and approve (or disapprove) returns at customer sites. This is costly in terms of salespeople’s time and interferes with their selling time. Because it is a negative situation, salespeople tend to defer as long as possible their inspection visits to customer sites, and customers become understandably irritated at the long delays. When the salesperson does arrive, it is already a negative situation and a negative selling environment, more so if the return has to be disapproved. One firm recognized this as a problem in cost as well as public relations, to say nothing of field sales productivity, and decided to institute an “honor system” for returns.