TL;DR ‘The customer is always right’ is an outdated saying that allows customers to be disrespectful towards workers.

A particular phrase that I have come to really despise is the saying. ‘the customer is always right.’ I think it is wrong and causes many problems.

The saying provides people with a feeling of entitlement which allows them to be rude and sometimes aggressive to employees. It normalises customers disrespecting the people who are serving them, they feel that they are always in the right and therefore will never admit when they actually might just be in the wrong.

For the past year I have been working as a waitress. Whilst the majority of customers are usually kind, I have also had a few experiences of people being unnecessarily angry and intimidating. Even worse, I have experienced people say quite sexist and misogynistic comments towards me that are completely offensive. However, I have never felt like I am able to stand up for myself as there is this pressure to always accommodate the customer and ensure that they are happy.

This is a problem as it effects the morale of the employees. ‘The customer is always right’ forces workers to put up with abuse from customers, they must never make them feel that they are in the wrong. This can create a really negative and hostile work culture, which ultimately can affect employee’s mental health.

The truth is, it is impossible to satisfy everyone, and sometimes there are customers who are just not worth keeping. Especially the ones who use the excuse of ‘the customer is always right’ to justify their rude and offensive behaviour.

TL;DR: In business terms, the customer IS always right

Whether you're in the business of selling nappies or the news, reminding yourself that your customer is always right is about as basic (and as difficult) a business lesson as there is.

My money, my choice where to spend it.
One of the first things I was told when I started working was that as a service industry our only advantage over competitors was to offer better service than they did.
So yes the customer is always right
That doesn't, however, mean that they can be sexist or misogynistic towards you and this should always be reported to whoever manages you.
Those sorts of people are objectionable all the time and not just as a customer!!!

TL;DR The customer is not always right, but the original phrase is an important business practice to keep in mind.

The answer is not as simple as yes they are or no they aren't. The intent behind the phrase 'The customer is always right' is to make the customer feel special. A business that prioritizes customer service above all is a business that follows the phrase. Following this guideline is not a bad thing, as companies should uphold the wishes of the consumers. As difficult or annoying as it may be at times, the customers are spending their hard-earned money, and they have the right to act and speak however they want, so businesses should try and be accommodating.

However, this phrase is not literal, and problems arise when people take it as such. This phrase can give consumers a feeling of entitlement that can lead to rude or abusive behavior towards employees. 'The customer is always right' is an idea, not an excuse. There should be a line between respecting the customer and needlessly taking abuse from them.

So, is the customer literally always right? The answer is no, the customer is not always right, and there should be a limit to what employees have to take from customers. However, companies should keep the original intent of the phrase in mind when conducting business to keep customers satisfied and returning for more.

The consumer being right all the time would be the most broken ability in society, and that's why it's certainly true. I believe the term was true if it means taking ownership of a mistake that the business was accountable for, but customer culture assumes it also means being accountable for any slippery slope.

I believe living up to this expectation can be harmful to any business since wrong, clueless, or abusive customers may expect unrealistic treatment from employees. Working conditions and company culture play a major role in keeping employees happy, productive, and efficient, so businesses should strive to keep both the customer and employee satisfied. I mean, Forbes magazine did say it may be time to change the slogan to "the customer is sometimes wrong."

'The customer is always right' is a statement often misunderstood by customers, referring to product rather than customer service.

I've worked a lot of years in retail, and I do often hear the phrase 'the customer is always right' when I'm telling someone they can't have a refund or can't get a discount. And it always makes me laugh a bit when they pull it out.

The phrase, at least to my understanding and the understanding of every store manager I've ever worked for, refers to the idea that whatever increases profits is the way forward.

It refers to the idea that if, for example, you sold apples and oranges, and the apples sell far better than oranges, you should stock apples and focus on that. The customer is right in so far as they know what they want to buy, and if a shop wants to make a profit, it should accommodate that. If you go against what customers want to buy, then customers will not buy.

The term can also refer to the idea that retailers should try and be as accommodating as possible to customers who have complaints, as ultimately it is their business you want, and so doing something that will lead to a loss of that business is the wrong thing to do.

However, I absolutely agree that the common idea of 'the customer is always right' in reference to 'do what I want' is a misconception that many hold. I do often enjoy pointing that out to particularly rude customers.

In the sense that you have to put on you "customer service face", yes. But you are only pretending that they are right, more often than not they are wrong.