Lately, I’ve been following the news stories covering the oil spill in the Gulf. The experts are saying that it is the biggest spill in history and it’s getting bigger. BP says 5,000 barrels of oil are gushing out per day, while a researcher from Purdue University is estimating 70,000 barrels.

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Everyone is pointing fingers. No one is taking responsibility. The possibility that the spill volume estimation is too low and hampering progress is problematic. I was reading an article on cnn.com where Edward Markey, a representative from Massachusetts, was quoted as saying, “If you don’t understand the scope of the problem, the capacity of finding the answer is severely compromised.” Isn’t that true of any business?

If you don’t know how big a problem really is, how can you fix it?  How can issues be resolved when no one takes responsibility for mistakes made and points fingers at everyone else?

As I watch the progression of the oil spill story, I can’t help but think that every customer service rule in the book is being broken, and the customers are those living on the coast as well as the rest of us. They are killing the livelihoods of Gulf fishermen, various ecological systems, and delaying economic recovery in some ways. We in the business world ought to take note of what the companies involved with the oil spill are NOT doing.

"If you don't understand the scope of the problem, the capacity of finding the answer is severely compromised."

Take responsibility for mistakes no matter how big or small. How can you get repeat customers or new customers if they can’t trust you to be honest with them? Consumers do talk to each other. They give recommendations to each other, positive and negative. If you deceive your customers, they will find out and the word will spread. Negative news travels way faster than positive. Once you take responsibility for mistakes made, you can assess the damage and get the full scope of the problem at hand.

Remember: be honest about the how big the issue is. Honesty is what brings customers back. If you don’t know all the ins and outs of the problem, you won’t be able to fix it the way it should be, which in turn leads to one of the worst reviews ever read.

But....if you take responsibility and remain honest with the customers, you can still get a good review because they’ll be talking about how you were so willing to bend over backwards to fix the problem in a timely manner.

I guess the sum of it all is this: don’t let your customer service become an oil spill. Be honest, take responsibility, and get the problem fixed properly.

*NASA Satellite Photo of BP Oil Slick acquired May 4, 2010.